The Destruction of Ranma Saotome - Combustion
by SkyStrider
Summary: The Long Calm begins. Come watch through the eyes of the Ranma cast as people heal and secrets are exposed. But trouble stirs as Tofu heals Judge Sanu, and Sanu confronts a "Question of Magic". Sanu begins to investigate Genma while ordering a DNA test for Ranma who is still stuck in his female form. The Storm rumbles in the distance, but someone local will be burned badly...
1. The Spy

The usual disclaimer: Ranma ½ is a trademark of Rumiko Takahashi and VIZ Communications, and its characters have been borrowed without permission. This story was written for non-commercial purposes only.

This story is the second part of "The Destruction of Ranma Saotome". If you haven't read "Ignition", I'm afraid "Combustion" will not make much sense. However, the tone of "Combustion" will be much lighter and there will be more humor and less "high drama".

Note on rating: I've been debating whether this story should be rated "T" or "M". After reviewing other stories, I've decided on "T" for now – the language is very indirect (it's actually more indirect that many of the "T" stories out there). If I get much pushback, I'll raise the rating and possibly put out a "K+" version as well for those who do not read "M".

* * *

Chapter 1: The Spy

With a little help from Toshio Kuno, Tofu had managed to grab an unused operating room and get everyone moved there. Between the police, the three patients (Ryoga, Akane, and Ranma still stuck as Ranko), Nodoka and Akari (who left only very briefly to see to Katsunishiki), at least one doctor (Tofu or Isamu), one nurse (or office manager), Nabiki and Kasumi (who were there more often than not), and at least two visitors at any given time, there was no other room in the hospital capable of handling the crowd.

The three patients were now in normal bedtime garb with robes rather than hospital gowns. They would experience discomfort if any member of the trio was gone for more than a few minutes, but that time limit started to stretch a little by the end of the first day (not by much, but some). They frequently finished each other sentences, which drove them all wild. They would snip and snap at each other, causing Akari to have to play peace maker frequently. Akari often fell back on reminding the trio that they couldn't run away from each other. Also, the three would occasionally spontaneously blush all at once and avoid each others' eyes. The blushing seemed to be caused by random conversations, but Nabiki couldn't figure out why some perfectly innocuous words would trigger it. By the start of the second day, the behaviors began to drop off as each of them found that their mind was more and more their own again, much to Akari's relief. None of the trio had realized what private people they really were. Tofu had music playing constantly in the room which seemed to relax the patients.

The individual couples were frequently seen holding hands with their significant others, even if they were fighting with each other (as was often the case with Ranma/Ranko and Akane). This familiar behavior only increased as the incarceration lengthened (although the fighting dropped off dramatically during the second day). Teasing the couples did not change their behavior, much to Nabiki's annoyance (she was on a short holiday from college). Often, it would only cause the targeted couple to nestle together and respond to the teasing as a team.

Despite this constant togetherness, Nabiki noted there were some significant conversations in the room:

* * *

Tofu and Ojima:

"Inspector, I just had a talk with Shizuka. How long has this been going on?" Tofu asked quietly.

Ojima winced. "Let's just say I had a rough childhood. I learned to keep my mouth shut early in life," Ojima replied.

"You knew who I was then. Why didn't you come talk to me?" Tofu quizzed.

"Because, at first, I saw what you were, and that gave me some concerns," Ojima answered. Nabiki's secrets detector went off from where she was eavesdropping. Tofu looked pained. Ojima saw the look and followed quickly with: "I'm sorry about that. Then I saw you were trustworthy and I also saw what you were doing to alleviate the trouble in this town. Let' just say I saw how much you were doing and I didn't want to add to the load."

"All right," Tofu agreed. "But did it ever occur to you that you might deserve some peace too? Or that if you allowed me to help you, I might allow you to help me?"

"You?" the Inspector said with surprise. "An all-powerful magic user? What use can I be to you?"

The doc rubbed his eyes and said wearily: "I'm not a god, Ojima. You already know that. I'm quite mortal and I frequently hit the wall. I do lose battles and I have to deal with that, just like you. Maybe if we join forces, we can lose fewer battles. You're quite powerful on the mortal plane and not bad on the spiritual one. And it's always better to have allies and friends."

Ojima snorted a little and then said: "Yes, you're right there. I've lost way too many battles."

"Me too," Tofu agreed tiredly. "But there's one coming up that none of us can afford to lose."

The Inspector thought a little about that. "All right, I'm in," he said finally. "What do I have to do?"

Tofu pulled out an appointment card and wrote a time on it. "My Sunday class is full. You'll need to see me during the week for that chronic pain in your shoulder." He handed Ojima a card.

Ojima nodded and took the card. "Done. See you on Thursday." The inspector nodded again and then walked away as his phone began to ring.

Tofu's hand shot through the curtain behind him and pulled Nabiki through: "Not one word, young lady," he warned her.

"Hey, would I say anything?" she protested innocently. At his look, her face grew serious. "I don't blackmail anymore Tofu, and I've *never* disrespected cops. Beside, he's one of us now."

Tofu smiled at her grimly: "More than you know Nabiki. More than you know…"

* * *

Ukyo and Akane:

About 10 AM or so on Tuesday, Nabiki became concerned as Konatsu and Ukyo walked into the room. "How did they get past the reception desk?" she wondered. Her concern became surprise when Ukyo burst into tears and yelled "Akane! I'm so sorry!" The chef ran over to Akane and grabbed the surprised young woman in a fierce bear-hug – a lesser mortal would have been crushed to death. Ukyo totally ignored everyone else in the room, including Ranko. Even Konatsu (dressed in his waitress uniform) was caught totally off-guard.

"I was your rival and yet you never blamed me! You tried to make me feel welcome and I would plot against you! I'm an idiot! You made sure the girls treated me nicely and I paid you back by trying to blow up your wedding! I'm so sorry for that! I tried to come between you and Ranma and you never stopped caring…" Ukyo blubbered on and on and on.

Eventually, Akane's shock wore off and she anxiously returned Ukyo's hug trying to get Ukyo to calm down. Akane would mutter "It's O.K." or "We are fine" (the subject of the word 'we' changed every now and then) to Ukyo.

Ranko moved away and looked at Dr. Ando with confusion. Ando just shrugged and said: "Confession is good for the soul. Let them be for a little bit. Ukyo obviously came in peace." Finally, Ukyo wound down after thirty minutes and the two young women just talked. Ranko and the others just moved away and let them have their space.

The conversation went well until Ukyo said, "Once you get out of here, Sugar, we have to teach you to cook. After all if you are going to feed that monstrous appetite Ran-chan has…"

"Now, wait a second!" Akane stopped her. "I'll admit my cooking was pretty bad, but it's been over a year since…"

"Oh please, honey! I'll admit you probably made some improvement, but from where you started…" Ukyo cut back in.

The argument got immediately started after that.

Nabiki watched the two verbally fight. Ukyo and Akane never shifted away from each other during the fight. In fact, they actually drew closer to each other. Nabiki immediately recognized what was going on and let them be. They'd spar for a while and cool down once the emotions wore out. Then they'd probably cry on each other shoulders and be back to being friends again once this was all done. Nabiki almost exploded in laughter when she saw the two actually hold hands as they were yelling.

Meanwhile, Ranko was standing against a wall with Konatsu, Ryoga, and Akari. "I don't understand them at all," she said.

"Ah, they just have a lot to sort through and everything has stewed through the last seven months. If you had any sort of brain you'd see that," Ryoga told him.

"What?" Ranko yelled. He was on edge from listening to Ukyo and Akane. "Now listen up pig-brain!..."

The fight got immediately started after that with Konastu making sure it stayed verbal.

Akari took in the two exchanges. Then she sighed to herself and walked away to sit alone. Nabiki watched as Kasumi noticed Akari and walked over to her student. "Are you all right, Akari?" Kasumi asked sitting down and placing an arm over the younger girl's shoulder. "Akane has enough love in her heart for everyone you know."

Akari gave a start at that. "Oh no, Kasumi! I don't begrudge Ukyo restarting her friendship with Akane!" Then her face turned wistful. "But…"

"But?" Kasumi prompted.

Nabiki had to shove her hand in her mouth again to stop from laughing as she saw Akari point at the two quarrels and ask plaintively: "Kasumi? When do I get to be the child?" Kasumi laughed in sympathy as she enfolded the young woman in a hug.

* * *

Ojima and Nodoka:

Nabiki quietly drifted over to were Nodoka and the Inspector were talking.

"I have to know, Inspector," Nodoka said in a hushed voice. "It's part of the disease. Where is the sword now?"

"Judge Sanu confiscated it after reading Ranma's file. His office has a large safe in it for keeping confidential documents. He pulled out several drawers and the sword is there now," Ojima said just as quietly. "For what it's worth, I trusted you."

A look of pain crossed Nodoka's face and then she smiled briefly. "Four months ago, I wouldn't have been worthy of that trust." She shrugged then. "It doesn't matter anymore. Ranma is the owner of the sword now, not me. He's the Saotome heir – he's passed all the tests. His twentieth birthday was just a formality. I'll have my lawyer contact the court and file a petition to return the sword to Ranma on his twenty-fifth birthday."

"Why the five year delay?" the Inspector asked gently.

"I have caused tremendous emotional pain to my son with that weapon. I took the family heirloom and poisoned it. I'd like time for some of the poison the drain out," she whispered.

"I had to place that information in Ranma's file," the Inspector told her. "I needed Kasumi to have a legal right to see Ranma and I have to tell the truth, Mrs. Saotome. That's my disease."

Again, Nodoka smiled briefly. "Don't expect me to take you to task for protecting my son, Inspector. Besides, you didn't banish me from him, and you gave me an excuse to stay in the Tendo residence. They are the closest I've had to a real family. Soun's like my brother and I'd love to consider his daughters mine, except I never want to even try and replace Kimiko. At least they let me call them my nieces."

"Did you ever meet Kimiko Tendo?" he asked.

"Twice. Both times she absolutely blew me away. Soun once compared her to a tsunami – a very apt description. She was definitely like a wave from the sea – she absolutely overwhelmed you and knocked your feet out from under you," she answered.

"What was she like?" Ojima asked curiously.

Nodoka smiled mischievously this time: "Take Kasumi's grace, Akane's power, and Nabiki's mind – merge them into one woman. Then add Kasumi's love of family, Akane's temper, and Nabiki's mischief. That was Kimiko – her daughters do her justice."

"The poor beggar never stood a chance," the Inspector laughed.

"Soun?" Nodoka quizzed and then shook her head. "No, he never stood a chance against her. She marked him as hers and it was all over for him. She was larger than life despite her average size. I only spent a total of eight hours with her, and I can remember every minute. Sometime soon, I need to sit down with the three sisters and tell them about those meetings…" her voice trailed off then and the two sat in silence, much to Nabiki's frustration.

* * *

Ranko and Akane:

After lunch, Nabiki saw Akane and Ranko sitting on the floor off in an alcove partially blocked by curtains and decided to drift over and see what the lovebirds were discussing. While Nabiki was behaving herself more and more these days, old habits died hard, especially where family was concerned.

"It's starting to fade now," Ranko commented.

Akane nodded her head. "I can no longer hear what you are going to say before you say it."

"That was weird," Ranko admitted. "I could mind-speak with Ryoga before, but that wasn't much different than talking since we had to work to project the thoughts and had to be right next to each other anyway. Eavesdropping on someone else's thoughts just felt wrong."

"Well, it wasn't so much their thoughts as their emotions, but I know what you mean," Akane replied. "By the way, I don't think I said 'Thank You' for showing me how to build the Dream Temple. That made last night's dreams much easier to share."

"It does allow us to have some privacy from each other," Ranko agreed, and then she grinned at Akane. "By the way, Temple?" she asked. "That was more like the Museum. Who knew you were quite that creative?"

Akane laughed a little and gave Ranko a tap on the back of the head. "Oh, and you're one to talk. You had to have three Temples," she responded.

"That's not my fault," Ranko smirked and then sobered up. "Ryoga's suggestion not to merge the Temples was a good one though. That decision somehow feels right. So does your suggestion to build the plaza and place a wall around the Three. Linking the Temples with a covered walkway was another good suggestion. I don't know why, but things feel stronger somehow."

Akane nodded and then seemed to remember something. She let her head roll back and tap the wall behind her. "Thank heavens you showed Ryoga how to build the Maze," she said with remembered relief. "I almost felt I was going to have a nosebleed with those statues of his!"

"Man," Ranko groaned. "I'm not sure who I felt more sorry for – him or us."

"Yeah, I know what you mean. Private fantasies are not meant to be shared," Akane said. "I think Akari would die from embarrassment if see knew what lurked in her fiancé's mind."

Ranko thought about that for a minute and said: "I'm not sure that's true from what we learned. She's not quite as naïve as she appears and I'm getting the feeling that she's the one setting the pace."

Akane snorted: "I'd almost feel sorry for him, but not quite – good for her. He needs a firm hand."

Ranko rolled her eyes and replied: "Apparently he's getting one."

Akane looked at Ranko and then she asked a little pensively: "Do you really think Akari is pretty?"

Ranko sighed, "Oh gods. I'm going to put my foot in this, but I'll give it a shot anyway - Listen up Miss Insecurity: Of course I think she's pretty – she *is* pretty. But I think you're gorgeous. Doesn't that count for something? And it's not like you didn't evaluate the men around you either."

Akane bristled and then winced at Ranko's words as she caught herself. "I couldn't exactly stop it, part of my brain just runs amuck like that sometimes. I shut it down as quickly as I can."

"Yeah, well so does mine and I do the same. And as insecure as you feel about it, keep in mind that you're at least in a shape I'm attracted to right now. My male shape is still locked away for another week or so. I have to rely on your memory for me to compete with the guys," Ranko told her sharply.

"Now that's not fair! I don't love you because of how you look!" Akane fired back. "I love you because you have a big heart even though you are a dummy."

"Oh, I can feel the love now," Ranko said sarcastically. "And do you really think it's all that different for me? Do you really think I love you just because of how you look?" Ranko clamped her mouth shut for a few seconds. Nabiki guessed Ranko was about to compare Akane's physical attributes to other girls (or herself) and stopped before swallowing her foot whole; apparently Tofu's coaching was having some effect. Instead, Ranko said: "I love you for who you are – a very sweet girl despite that Force 10 temper."

Nabiki saw Akane's mouth open and then shut as her temper had the rug pulled out from under it. Nabiki grinned as she recognized what was happening to her little sister: Akane could either hotly deny Ranko's argument, which would prove Ranko's point, or acknowledge that he/she may be right. Fortunately for Akane, Kasumi had been coaching her as well. Instead, Akane pressed for reinforcement: "Hmph. Do you really think I'm a sweet girl?" she asked snippily. Nabiki was actually proud of Akane for that little bit of manipulation.

Unfortunately, Ranko was still Ranma. Nabiki winced as the red-head pulled Akane into a head-lock and began tapping (lightly) on the blue-black head with the flat of her fist. "Duh!" Ranko said a little loudly. "I said it, didn't I?"

Akane elbowed Ranko, freeing herself, and turned away from Ranko, crossing her arms over her chest. "Idiot. Did it ever occur you that a kiss might be more appropriate it?" Again, Nabiki was proud of her little sister – this time for keeping her temper.

Ranko looked flabbergasted for a moment and Nabiki knew why – she was a little surprised herself. Despite some of the mean rumors at school (which were never brought to Akane's attention – especially if the speaker valued their life), everyone knew Akane was attracted to men – just not the idiots at her school. Akane's past crush on Tofu was not a secret, despite what Akane thought. Also, Akane had been caught a number of times looking at Ranma by Sayuri and Yuka when Akane thought no one was about and this was before the couple had been dating. The two girls had made sure to tease Akane about those times (especially in public which helped counter the other rumors). Nabiki had also caught Akane looking at Nabiki's hidden stash of magazines. Despite the denials, the middle sister knew that Akane had a healthy curiosity.

Finally, Ranko reached out and yanked Akane backwards so Akane's head fell into the red-head's lap. Ranko then leaned forward and gave Akane a very solid kiss. Nabiki was slightly amused that there was no revulsion emanating from Akane – quite the opposite. Akane slid her hands around Ranko's neck pulling the sitting girl deeper into the kiss. When they finally stopped, Akane reached up and tapped Ranko lightly on the forehead. "Better," Akane said. Ranko looked at the girl in her lap with confusion. Akane spoke again: "Ranma, do you know your scent never changes even though your shape does?"

"I don't understand…" Ranko started and then trailed off. Nabiki was starting to understand though – apparently Akane was a bit more perceptive than Nabiki gave her credit for. Her little sister could see past the surface of things…

"No, I suppose you don't yet, but you will," Akane answered rolling her eyes a little. "Let's put it on this footing: Ranma? Did you just enjoy that kiss?"

"Hell yeah!" Ranko answered with a smile.

"Well, so did I," Akane returned. Ranko looked confused, so Akane spoke again after a minute: "And you are waiting for what?"

Ranko still didn't really understand, but she did understand the invitation well enough and leaned forward again.

Nabiki smiled to herself and decided she heard enough. She moved away quietly and let the couple be…

* * *

Kasumi and Akane:

Nabiki went up to the hospital roof looking for her sisters. As she opened the access door and walked out into the garden on top of the roof, she saw her sisters sitting off to one side. Slowly she crept up to listen.

"I've been meaning to ask you this: how are you feeling, little sister?" Kasumi asked Akane. "I haven't been able to talk to you separate from Ranma."

Akane blushed at this. "Sorry, we haven't been able to separate until after lunch today," she said.

"Not that you wanted to be separated," her sister teased her.

Akane turned a deep red, much like her namesake. "No," she admitted. "I'll also admit that I wish he could change back to his male form though."

Kasumi looked amused. "I've seen the two of you kissing anyway," she said with that serene smile.

Nabiki didn't think Akane could turn much redder. "I'm not really into girls, but he is still who he is," Akane confessed. "With my mind, all I see is Ranma, both the Yin and the Yang, and he's definitely male."

"So, you can still 'find' him then," Kasumi said with satisfaction.

Akane nodded her head and the blush began to fade. "Stronger than ever. He's also starting to 'find' me as well. We have stopped living inside of each other's head (which was a bit annoying), but we know where the other is now."

"And how do you feel about that, Akane?" Kasumi asked.

"Huh?" was Akane's intelligent response.

"You and Ranma have never really had a chance to determine your own destinies. You were tossed together at age 16, told you were going to get married, and your opinions were ignored causing a lot of hostilities. Now, you can't even separate your spirits, removing even more of your free will. How do you feel about that?" Kasumi pressed.

Annoyance flashed across Akane's face. "Kasumi," she started sharply. "Do you really think I would marry Ranma just so he could have a magic cure?"

"Sometimes, I do wonder…" her big sister said.

"No, Kasumi. Marriage is a forever promise – at least it is suppose to be. Something you better keep in mind before New Year's rolls around," Akane scolded.

Kasumi's eyebrow shot up at the turning of the tables. Akane went on: "I was willing to marry Ranma because I loved him and I believed that he loved me. Turns out that he did, even if he couldn't admit it at the time. I know now that getting married then would have been a mistake, but only because we were immature and setting ourselves up for a rough time. Eventually, we would have been all right, but the delay has allowed us to grow a little more and see that the marriage would have worked out – again, eventually."

"And how could you possibly know that, little sister? You are not married now," Kasumi pointed out.

"Ever since Ranma and I started dating formally, I figured out that love is not enough to make a marriage work. Romantic fools say love conquers all, and I suppose there is *some* truth to that, but it's easy to fall in love. Staying in love and working together is a lot harder. You need to have common goals and be willing to compromise. Ranma and I want to be martial artists – it's who we are. Ranma is not a chef, or a house-husband, or a fancy sort of servant. I'm not a meek housewife," Kasumi laughed at her while Akane just glared and went on: "Nor am I some hostess or an actress. I am a martial artist – it's all I want to be. And I want to teach it and pass it on. So does Ranma. We also both want a family eventually. Ranma wants me to learn to cook. I want him to go to college. I've agreed to learn his way so long as he doesn't think I'll be doing all the cooking. He's agreed to go to college, but he wants me to complete two years before he'll go. The compromises go on and on. Had we married back in February, I'm confident we would have gotten there eventually, but it would have been more painful and taken longer to even get to this point."

"Oh my. It seems my little sister has thought about this a good deal. So when is the wedding?" Kasumi challenged causing Akane to blush again.

"Ranma is planning to propose sometime in the New Year – that's all he'll tell me, and that's all the commitment I need from him right now," Akane said. "I want my courtship, and Ranma's willing to 'walk the path' so to speak," the younger woman said defiantly. "That's something Daddy never understood."

Nabiki cut in then. She walked up behind Akane and put her arms around the sitting girl. "So, am I forgiven for sabotaging the wedding then?" Nabiki asked archly.

"How the hell do you do that?" Akane asked in frustration. "I couldn't detect a thing."

"Language, Akane," Kasumi scolded

"We all have our secrets little sister. And you didn't answer the question," Nabiki said.

Akane looked up at Nabiki with annoyance, "Yes, you are forgiven Nabiki, but I'm not forgetting either. When I get married next time, I'm having you tranquilized, stuffed in your Bridesmaid dress, and tied to a post near the altar."

"Well, almost forgiven," Kasumi murmured.

Akane glared at Kasumi. "You'd better be taking notes, Kasumi," Akane warned her. "Your wedding is coming up in under four months. You should have Nabiki under constant surveillance starting about now and get Tofu to start planning the medications to dope Daddy."

Kasumi laughed at the sparkle of mischief in Nabiki's eyes and the look on Akane's face. "And the games go on and on…" all three women thought.

* * *

A/N: Next up - The Spy and Herself

* * *

A/N: Corrections added 5/6/14. Thanks to Pursemonger and Saggit for the corrections.


	2. The Spy and Herself

Chapter 2: Thy Spy and Herself

Nabiki noticed Ranko was missing after dinner and decided that she was probably up in the rooftop garden. There were now only two policemen with the family and they were willing to let Ranko go to the roof so long as she promised not to run away. Feeling a little restless, she decided to go find her sparring partner. She went up and opened the rooftop door to find Ranko standing on the wall surrounding the garden. Nabiki was about to race over and yell at her when the red-headed girl raised her arms with clenched fists and a strong wind began blowing from Ranko across the garden. Ranko opened her fists and the wind became a gale, forcing Nabiki to hold onto the building. The gale blew for a few minutes and then Ranko dropped her arms and the wind died completely.

"Hey idiot!" Nabiki yelled out. "Get off the wall before you fall! I thought you were going to jump!"

Ranko turned and looked at Nabiki. "And 'Hello' to you too, Tendo. Jumping from here wouldn't kill me anyway."

"Oh, you're tough enough to handle a 20 story fall now, are you? You couldn't beat that dragon potion without help," Nabiki shot back.

Ranko's eyes flashed a little at the barb, but the grin she returned was absolutely impish. "Come see!" she challenged. She raised her hand again and Nabiki saw what looked to be a series of large glowing blue cushions appearing to form a staircase from the garden floor to the top of wall where Ranko stood. "If you're brave enough, that is."

Nabiki couldn't resist the challenge (she was a Tendo after all). She stepped forward gingerly onto the first glowing cushion and found it filled with air. Carefully, she applied more and more of her weight to it and then stood completely on it. As soon as she did that, the cushion stopped glowing and seemed to disappear completely; it seemed as if she was floating in air about a 30 cm above the ground. The next higher cushion waited. "Ranma…" Nabiki started.

"What's the matter, Nabiki? Afraid of a little height?" Ranko smirked.

Nabiki glared at her, and stepped on the next higher one. She felt the cushion take her full weight and then vanish (at least visibly - it still supported her). Nabiki closed her eyes to ignore the fact she was standing on nothing.

"Sorry, Nabiki, but you'll have to open your eyes to see where the next cushion is, and going back might be a mistake," the red-headed girl mocked.

"Bastard," Nabiki muttered. She opened her eyes to see that Ranko had indeed moved the next cushion. She took the next step and was now standing a meter above the garden floor with no visible support.

Ranko smirked again. "People are conditioned to have something under them when they walk, aren't they Nabiki? Most people find it unnerving to stand in mid-air."

"Damn him," she thought. "He's right. I'm only a meter up in the air, but I'm shaking inside seeing nothing. The wall is three meters high. I'm not letting him win though." She stepped up on the next cushion and it vanished too.

"Four to go," Ranko taunted.

"Come on, Nabiki," she told herself. "Don't let him psych you out. You know he'd never…" The thought froze in her head. She stretched out her arms and closed her eyes allowing a serene smile to form on her face.

"Open your eyes or you'll fall, Nabiki," Ranko commanded.

"No," she said, stepping blindly forward onto the next cushion.

"You almost fell off there, Nabiki," the shape-changer warned. "The next step will carry you off the edge."

Nabiki stepped anyway. "It doesn't matter, Ranma" she said as she stood on the next one.

"What?" Ranko said with surprise.

Nabiki took the next step up. "Your strategy has a basic flaw, Ranma. You see, you know you cannot trust me. But I know I can trust you." She stepped blindly again, only to hear Ranko sigh. Then she felt Ranko's hand slip behind her waist and the pig-tailed girl's other hand slid under an arm to guide her up on top of the wall. Nabiki felt stone under her feet. She opened her eyes and looked down into Ranko's blue ones. "You will not let me fall," she smirked.

Ranko rolled her eyes. "Fine, you win this round," the red-head said. "Now sit and you'll see why you don't have to worry about me jumping from here."

Nabiki did as she was told and burst out with a short laugh. The garden did not encompass the entire rooftop. The roof proper actually started three meters down on the outside of the wall and sloped away to the true edge of the roof. The slant looked to drop about a story or so to the edge and the true edge was marked by a fence about 7 meters high that curved inward and was topped with barb wire. Her eyes also picked out sensors and cameras between the garden wall and the rooftop edge. Someone trying to kill themselves would have a lot of hard work ahead of them and they would have little time before they were stopped.

"There are secured doorways at each of the roof corners," Ranko commented, also sitting down. "And this is a hospital where a lot of desperate people end up. They do their best to stop jumpers."

"Still, I suppose you and the other martial artists could jump from here over that fence," Nabiki noted.

Ranko shook her head. "There are easier ways for martial artists to kill themselves, and there's always a chance you might change your mind on the way down. Besides, I cannot kill myself by falling anymore – I reflexively slow myself in the air to a speed I can land at."

"You can fly?" Nabiki asked in shock.

Ranko shook her head again. "No – as Buzz Lightyear once said, it's more like falling with style." She raised her hand and a light breeze wrapped around the two women for a few seconds, then moved on as Ranko lowered her hand again. "One of the benefits of being a Wind Mage."

"Should you being doing that?" Nabiki asked with a raised eyebrow.

"It actually helps a little," Ranko told her. "The mage craft arises from the original part of my soul – the part that still trapped. Any exercise strengthens that part of my spirit and weakens the dragon further. Tofu thinks the dragon will have to yield in a few weeks. Akane hurt it a lot too when she came looking for me and it cannot heal as long as I don't yield. Right now the dragon is hiding from me, but it's running out of places and it cannot fight me anymore."

The women were silent for a little bit until Ranko asked a question: "Nabiki, is there such a word as 'nexus'?"

"Huh? Why do you ask?" she pushed back.

"It's a word I've been hearing at a distance. It's whispered here and there. It's also been in my dreams. What does it mean?" Ranko asked again.

"It means 'connection', 'hub', or 'center' depending on the context," Nabiki answered.

"I guess that's sort of makes sense," Ranko said. She pulled her knees up to her chest and rested her head there while they were looking out over Nerima.

"Where's the nexus, Ranma?" Nabiki asked.

Ranko swept her arm over the view in front of her. "It's here. There's a pool of power right below us and it stretches out quite a ways. Its influence stretches to the borders of Nerima."

"Exactly to the borders?" Nabiki questioned. "That's a little unusual, isn't it?"

"No, it's not. It responds to us, enough so that we are a part of it and it's a part of us. We set the boundary on it when we declared Nerima an entity. It would have followed any identity as we defined it. Before man set foot in this area, it was just an intersection of power flows. Man set his tents about it and was influenced by it. As the locals grew, so did it, becoming a pool. Now it's more like a lake – a large lake. It's the reason the Nerima martial artists exist. It's why there are so many strange things in this city."

Nabiki was silent for a little bit, then she asked the question that had been on everyone's mind: "Ranma, what happened on Sunday?"

Ranko sighed. "Something big, Nabiki. Something very big," she said. "Akane thought I was dead and tried to find me. She released a lot of power from her soul – enough to kill her. Fortunately, she also unknowingly tapped into the Pool which kept her alive until I got there, but then she couldn't disconnect. I freed her by tapping into the Pool myself, but the Earth began to react due to the amount of Power we released. Ryoga felt that and managed to reflect the Power back on itself, but his focusing opened a doorway, and something came through."

"What came through?" Nabiki asked in a hushed voice.

Ranko sighed again. "The Storm, Nabiki. The Storm Kimiko warned Kasumi about. Tofu said that something has been broken for a long time, but someone powerful doesn't want it fixed. The World needs it fixed though and has been trying to for a several hundred years. Now the World has found a way past the barricades, through Ryoga, Akane, and me. We blasted a path for it. The thing is, that powerful someone is still around, and will try to interfere. The more interference there is, the worst the Storm will be."

Nabiki arched an eyebrow. "I'd love to say this is all your fault, Saotome, but I have a feeling that's not the case."

Ranko snorted a laugh. "Actually, Tofu made a point of saying that wasn't the case. The Storm has been building for a long time. Normally, it would have been released as an earthquake or a tsunami, but he said our pyrotechnic display probably saved thousands of lives and the Storm will already be weaker because we released it instead of a natural disaster. I guess that will have to do."

"You have the strangest luck, Saotome," Tendo told him. "I don't know whether you are blest or cursed." Ranko just shrugged, so Nabiki changed the subject and asked "How are you feeling?"

Ranko shrugged again. "The dragon is dying and I should be free of it soon. I don't have Ryoga's or Akane's thoughts and emotions echoing in my head anymore, so that's good. The released Power tangled our spirits up. I learned a lot of things about Akari and Ryoga that I rather not know and I'm trying to forget. Akane's in the same boat. I guess Ryoga learned a few things about Akane and me that he'd not rather know. I didn't have too many secrets from Akane or Ryoga left, so I got off lucky there – all my sins are out there already."

Akane's voice sounded from the ground behind them in a sing-song tone: "Oh, I wouldn't say that, boyfriend." Akane appeared on the wall with a leap and addressed Nabiki: "Sis, I need to talk to my fiancé for a little bit now that we have the right level of intimacy back."

"Oh, I guess so," Nabiki smirked as she stood up. "Can you give me a lift down?" Akane responded by holding Nabiki firmly around the waist and leapt to the ground with her sister. Nabiki walked back to the door saying: "I'll just leave you two lovebirds alone." Nabiki walked through the door, but quickly sneaked back using her 'stealth mode'. She saw Akane leap back on the wall and sit down facing Ranko. Ranko looked neither concerned nor amused – just slightly puzzled. Nabiki listened in.

"What's up Akane?" the red-head asked.

"I must admit that it was interesting to share Ryoga's thoughts and learn about his relationship with Akari," Akane started.

"Umm, we really shouldn't know about that stuff, Akane," Ranko hedged. "I'll admit I'm relieved to know that he's really dedicated to her, but the other stuff we really need to forget. Ryoga stepped into the fight to help us after all. The rest isn't our business."

"And you're not the least bit interested in how far they actually have gone, say versus us?" Akane pressed.

Ranko started to blush. "They are engaged to be married. He gave her a ring. They've set a date for a year from Valentine's Day as a wedding date. Ryoga and I may be rivals, but this is not a race between us. What gives? I thought you were happy with the pace our relationship? You know I'm serious about you. You've been in my head now and you know I'm saving up for a ring," she said puzzled.

Akane seemed to consider something and then spoke: "Yes, Ranma, I know you love me and I love you. But I never knew what guys in general thought about the opposite sex – or what you thought of in particular. I found it rather… enlightening." Even through the fading light, Nabiki could see Akane's eyes were burning. She couldn't believe the hunger she saw there or that her little sister seemed to be emulating a stalking panther rather than her prim and proper self.

Ranko looked shocked as Akane shifted and leaned toward her. "B-B-But I'm not exactly wearing the right form now," she stuttered. Nabiki thought part of Ranko wanted to flee, but Akane's gaze captivated Ranko, pinning the red-head where she was.

"You can't believe how little that bothers me right now, Ranma," Akane said huskily. "I told you once that there was no Ranma-Yin and Ranma-Yang." The blue-black haired young woman had crawled forward a little to Ranko and raised a hand to stroke Ranko's cheek. "There's only Ranma – and he belongs to me!" Akane hissed before burying Ranko's objection in a deep kiss. Nabiki watched Ranko tremble as Akane slid her hand down Ranko's cheek to the red-head's throat and then began to trace Ranko's collarbone in an odd fashion. Akane's hand seemed to be glowing slightly with a red aura. A moan escaped from Ranko, surprising Nabiki so much that she lost control of her 'stealth mode.'

Suddenly Nabiki felt a strong hand close about her mouth and another grab her about the waist. She felt herself pulled back against her captor and lifted away from the ground. Her captor carried her swiftly and soundlessly through the garden's open door back into the hospital. Nabiki soon found herself in a stairwell half-way to the next floor when she heard Kasumi's voice hiss in her ear: "Not one word, Nabiki. Not. One. Word." Kasumi placed Nabiki on the stairwell platform. "I'll be right back," the big sister whispered.

Nabiki watched as Kasumi vanished back onto the garden's level. There was a slight noise above, but Nabiki was too lost in shock to notice it. "Kasumi just did that to me?" Nabiki thought. "I mean, I suppose I knew she was strong – she has to be if she is a Nerima Martial Artist, but she's *never* handled me like that, not even when we were younger!"

Nabiki watched as Kasumi climbed back down the stairwell. Kasumi closed the door and seemed to do something to the door. Then the eldest stepped down to where Nabiki watched her with wild eyes. Kasumi silently guided Nabiki down two flights of stairs and into an empty waiting area. Then she turned to Nabiki and said firmly: "You need to keep out of the way, and that was fairly private."

"Private? That looked more like a seduction! Who are you and what have you done with my sisters?" Nabiki said in a shocked tone.

"Ranma has been bad and has to be punished," Kasumi said firmly. "And he's not the only one."

"What the hell are you talking about, Kasumi? If that's punishment, bring it on!" Nabiki said.

Kasumi serene smile returned to her face. "Oh, he'll probably enjoy it all right, but he's going to get mastered, just like he's been doing to Akane; just like Ryoga's been doing to Akari; and just like Tofu's been doing to me."

"Huh?" Nabiki said in a confused tone.

"Ranma's been giving away secrets, Nabiki. He's used his intimate knowledge of the female body to map out a woman's chi paths and psyche. With a touch, he can charm Akane's senses, and he's shared the information with Ryoga and possibly Tofu," Kasumi told her.

"And I gave him away to Akane? What the hell was I thinking?" Nabiki burst out.

"You're not thinking now, Nabiki. There was no shared learning. When they make out, he owns Akane, and she can't even mount a decent offense. Yes, it can feel really good, but it's an imbalance in power, Nabiki. Over time, it can become poisonous to a relationship. A good relationship has to be between equals."

Nabiki stopped to consider what her sister just said. "All right, I see your point, but I don't think Ranma's or Ryoga's mind really works like that. They just think they are making their woman really happy."

"I agree and so does Akane. Neither boy is that devious. And Tofu may be that devious, but I doubt he's thinking in that manner – I know he truly loves me. Still, you summed up the problem with the phrase 'their woman', not 'their partner'. The power balance has to be maintained – there has to be give and take from both sides; there's joy in both ways. Akane has just had a long walk through the male mind and she has returned with a lot of information. Now she's evened the balance by sharing it with Akari and myself. She's also acting on it now, while Ranma's is stuck in a relatively 'safe' state."

"Whoa," Nabiki said stunned. "I didn't think her mind worked like that…"

"Little sister is a sexual being like the rest of us. She's been damaged by the idiots in her school, but she's healing rapidly and she loves Ranma very much. Now there an element of challenge between them," Kasumi told her bluntly.

"And she never backs down," Nabiki finished. "So, what about you and Akari?"

"I have a little more leisure, but I need to move as well. After tonight, Ranma and Akane will talk about their relationship and even things out between them as it suits them – Ranma will be in a suitable frame of mind. I need to do the same with Tofu before Ranma has a chance to talk to him. Akari's in the same boat," Kasumi answered.

"So, how are you going to get Tofu into a 'safe' state? Jusenkyo's a long way away," Nabiki stated with a raised eyebrow.

"I don't have to," Kasumi said matter-of-factly. "I'm on the pill and so is Akari. Probably by year's end, Akane should be too." She stopped then to pick up Nabiki's jaw and close Nabiki's mouth. Kasumi looked at Nabiki and marveled at the shocked look on her face. The eldest waved her hand in front of Nabiki's face. "Oh my. I seemed to have broken her…" Kasumi thought to herself.

* * *

A/N: Next: No hints - it would give too much away.

* * *

A/N: Judging from previous stories, I'm probably going to get into a little trouble with a few people's reactions to the second half of this chapter – Ces't la vie; I'm sure I can deal with it. Keep in mind that these are the thoughts of a group of fairly young (inexperienced) fictional women dealing with a group of fairly young (inexperienced - except for Tofu) fictional men. These thoughts do not necessarily have any bearing on reality or on the author's opinions (or maybe they do – one never knows) or on real people. And you may want to hold off until the next chapter before handing me my head.

BTW: Akane's hand is glowing because she is after the Yang Chi paths buried in Ranma's spirit, not the Yin paths that are closer to the surface of his spirit when he is Ranko, so she is using a little bit of Power. I'll also point out that Akane's and Ranma's relationship has come a long way from Jusendo (even if it still has a fair way to go).


	3. The Spy and the Swordwoman

Chapter 3: The Spy and the Swordwoman

Nabiki sat in Kasumi's room back at home, still in a state of shock. She had just watched her big sister pull out a piece of flowery gauze from a clothes drawer and pack an overnight bag. Then Kasumi had kissed Nabiki on the head and told her to stay at home tonight. Kasumi left to go to the clinic then and wait for Tofu to come back from visiting a patient at their home.

"It's finally happened," Nabiki thought. "My family has been replaced by pod-people. My youngest sister who used to scream 'Pervert' constantly is currently seducing another girl and my de facto mother who usually scolds me for cursing and impure thoughts is out dragging her fiancé into bed. To add to it, the 'pure' farm girl I know has taken over an unused hospital room and is playing 'mating season' with her husband-to-be who usually bursts blood from the nose at the faintest sight of female flesh. I cannot think of a single thing that would make this day more bizarre."

Nabiki sat there for a long while. She just couldn't process it. She knew she had a libido, but the fact that her sisters did too unhinged her for some reason. Finally, she heard a noise downstairs. Someone was in the kitchen. "Daddy's already gone to bed," she thought. "Who could be here?" She shook herself and went down to the kitchen.

As she opened the door, she saw Nodoka sitting at the table drinking some herbal tea and writing on a stationary pad. Nodoka looked up at Nabiki and smiled. "Hello Nabiki. What are you doing up? Why haven't you even changed for bed?" she asked.

Nabiki shook her head. "I'm having the weirdest day, Auntie. I think sleep will be a long time coming," Nabiki answered while leaning against the door jam.

Nodoka closed her writing pad and set it down. "Would you like a cup of herbal tea? I find that it relaxes me before bed time."

"I doubt it will work, but I'll give it a shot," Nabiki replied. Nodoka got up to heat the kettle and get out more tea. "Why are you here, Auntie?" Nabiki asked. "I thought that you'd stay at the hospital until Ranma and the rest were released."

Nodoka shrugged. "Everyone's on the mend," she said. "There's no real reason for me to sit there like a mother-hen. I tucked Akane into bed and came home."

Nabiki froze for a second and then looked sharply at Nodoka. "You saw Akane before you left?"

"Of course I did, love. She was a little hard to miss when she walked into the room with Ranma slung over her shoulders like she was returning with a deer from the hunt," the mother answered calmly.

Nabiki's brain couldn't handle it anymore. She fell back and slid down the wall in shock. Then she watched as Nodoka calmly walked over to her, knelt down, and checked Nabiki's pulse. "Oh my," the elder woman said, unconsciously echoing Kasumi. "I must admit catching you off guard like that was rather enjoyable." There was a definite twinkle in her eyes as she looked at the middle Tendo daughter.

"You knew?!" Nabiki burst out as Nodoka tried to help her up.

"Of course I knew, dear. I set everything up," Nodoka responded. She then had to scramble as Nabiki fell back again. "Hmmm…I don't think I should tell you any more – at least not until you're sitting down." She helped Nabiki over to the table and turned around to make the tea as Nabiki just sat there holding her head in her hands. The elder woman sang quietly to herself until she placed a steaming cup in front of Nabiki and refilled her own cup.

As Nodoka sat down again, Nabiki said: "I repeat: who are you and what have you done with my family?"

Nodoka looked pleased at that. "I'm happy to know I'm part of the family," she said.

"Duh," Nabiki answered. "I call you Auntie for a reason." Nabiki looked up and pleaded: "Nodoka, can you please have pity on me and tell me what is going on? Use short words and simple sentences please!"

"I don't know why you are so surprised. Before I started my medications, I was constantly trying to throw Akane and Ranma into bed together," Nodoka said mischievously.

"Auntie! Please!" Nabiki said desperately.

"Well, it started when Akane hesitatingly confronted Akari and apologized for what she now knew – as if Akane had any control in the matter. Akane was blushing beet-red at the time. Akari blushed in return and immediately forgave Akane; Ryoga had already warned Akari how 'complete' the tangle was. After a little bit, Akane's natural curiosity kicked in and she asked Akari (in a round-about way) what it was like. I was resting nearby and I heard the conversation. Akari is such a sweet girl that we often forget the fact that she runs a farm – even though she's followed by that walking mountain. She's a very earthy and practical girl, and her descriptions were very straight forward and thorough - much to the distress of the blood vessels in Akane's face. I think Akari was a little amused by Akane's reactions regarding such a basic life function that she went very in-depth – let that be a reminder that there are no angels among us. As I listened, alarm bells began to go off regarding the give-and-take between Ryoga and Akari, so I inserted myself into the conversation. After quizzing Akari and asking some very direct questions, Akane began chiming in with answers that I didn't like either. I figured I better get Kasumi involved then."

"Kasumi?" Nabiki quizzed.

At that, Nodoka reached across and cupped Nabiki cheek. "Nabiki, I would be very proud to call you three my daughters, but I can't. I came too late to claim such a title and I could never replace your mother anyway. I know who the Matriarch is in the family. I needed to involve Kasumi," Nodoka said firmly. She dropped her hand (after Nabiki squeezed it) and went on: "However, Kasumi also began providing answers I didn't like, so I took all three girls to the rooftop garden and tried to figure out what was going on. That's when I knew we had problems with a double agent so to speak, and I knew who the double agent was – and how to nullify him."

Nabiki looked at her curiously. "How did you recognize the issue from just a description? I would think that would be hard to do."

Nodoka sighed wanly. She then answered: "I know because that's how Genma use to treat me. I don't know where he gained the abilities, but first he would take care of me and then he would take care of himself. My participation was always as a receiver, never as the giver. In time, this echoed our entire relationship. As a result, I became emotionally dependent on Genma, far more than I should have been, and he never became dependent on me. When he decided to take Ranma away, I meant very little to him and I was so dependent on him, I couldn't even mount an effective defense."

"But sex isn't the whole relationship, Auntie!" Nabiki protested.

"No, it's not – not even close. But bad habits lead to worse habits. It's better to nip these things off now before they grow. Especially now, when the habits are relatively harmless. None of the men disrespect their partners, but their partners needed to claim their equality so to speak," Nodoka explained.

Nabiki seemed to regain her composure as Nodoka talked. "And you are O.K. with Akane seducing Ranma?" Nabiki asked archly.

"My fondest wish," Nodoka said wickedly, and then laughed. "But come now! Your sister is still Akane Tendo. She's not going to take Ranma anywhere he doesn't want to go. Nor is she going to go anywhere she doesn't want to go. I'm sure some clothes became a little loose, but Ranma's still locked in his female form and Akane's just not into female bodies. Akane just exercised the new 'emotional and spiritual' info she had. I am sure a true seduction did not happen – nor was it necessary." Nodoka grinned evilly. "Now, if Ranma was in his male form, I might be on the way to being a grandmother right now." The smile lost some of its intensity, but it did not vanish. "Still, they do love each other very much and I would not be disappointed if she did actually seduce Ranma, but that didn't happen – Ranma wasn't that far gone. He'll be back to himself shortly."

"And what about the others?" Nabiki asked.

Nodoka shrugged. "Your elder sister is an adult. I don't have a right to know her sex life, although I'm happy she feels she can confide in me. She will deal with Tofu as she feels it is appropriate. Akari is the effective owner and forewoman of a large farm. She has been dealing with the world as an adult for a number of years now. It's not for me to tell her how to run her life." Nodoka's grin became wicked again "I just secured a room as she requested."

Nabiki massaged her head a little. "Were things really that bad to need an intervention?" she asked.

Nodoka cocked her head a little to one side, and then back again. "Maybe, maybe not. The real issue is that the physical touch whether it is full sex or not is very important for the young – and us older folks at that – and I was making sure bad habits didn't develop. If Ranma did continue the pattern he'd establish, Akane's spirit would have eventually rebelled and she'd fix things – but probably not as smoothly as I just did. I very much want them to have a happy relationship. The same for Kasumi and Tofu – although in that case, I think some of it was just Tofu taking the lead because he's the more experienced partner. Ryoga and Akari were just icing on the cake – I like them well enough and they were within easy range for a minor correction. I just took out several 'bumps in the road' for all of them."

Nodoka paused thoughtfully. "Of course, one could argue that the real issue may be that I need a few more hobbies. I'll admit that I liked meddling in their lives, but that might be a bad idea going forward, even if I have the best intentions. Still, I'll also admit that the zoned, happy look on Ranma's face was priceless, and Akane looked so much like the cat that got the canary I was expecting to see feathers about her mouth – it was very amusing."

"That's it," Nabiki said. "Tomorrow, I'm going to the local colleges and getting some continuing education catalogs for you. I know there no way in hell I'm going to get you out of this house, and I don't want to mess with your medicines, so I'll settle for keeping you busy. The house is only allowed to have one master manipulator and that's ME."

Nodoka laughed. "It might not be a bad idea," she admitted. "Although I really hope Kasumi and Tofu come here for breakfast tomorrow. I'm expecting Tofu to have a very astonished expression and for Kasumi's face to look like the aforementioned cat. I'd love to see something on your sister's face besides that serene smile."

"I think I'll check the local high schools too," Nabiki noted. "Some of them have a few adult courses too." Nodoka just laughed again, so Nabiki decided to change the subject. "Who were you writing to when I came in?" Nabiki asked.

"I am writing a letter to you and your sisters," Nodoka said. At Nabiki's questioning look, she explained: "I'm writing about the two times I met your mother. I'm not much of a storyteller, so I wanted to write everything out so not to forget anything."

As Nabiki dove for the writing pad, Nodoka snatched it up. "Ah, ah, ah," the mother said chidingly. "You don't get this treat before your sisters, and you don't get it until I have everything down properly."

"But, Nodoka!" Nabiki protested with a good deal of anguish.

"No, it's not ready yet," Nodoka said firmly.

"Please! One tidbit!" the girl pleaded.

"All right, one," Nodoka agreed. She paused thoughtfully for a minute or so, and then began: "Everyone I've met in Nerima says your mother was always very sure of herself, but I bet I am one of the few people who ever saw an astonished look on your mother's face."

"O.K., this sounds interesting," Nabiki commented.

Nodoka smiled and continued. "I first met your mother when I was about 26 weeks pregnant with Ranma. Since it was my first pregnancy, I had no idea what to expect and I was very nervous. Genma didn't help either. He fretted about how I had not felt the baby kick yet and if everything was all right. My doctor had assured me that things looked and sounded fine, but that didn't stop Genma from aggravating me. He was also trying every old wives tale in existence to find out the sex of the baby. Finally, I fled the house and went out for some lunch to get away from him."

"Apparently, your father had recently told Kimiko about the arranged marriage, and your mother absolutely flipped," Nodoka continued.

"You're kidding!" Nabiki exclaimed.

"Oh no," Nodoka laughed. "Your mother had met Genma a few times, and she disliked him immensely. She thought he was a chauvinist bigot and there was no way she was going to let one of her children marry any of his spawn, despite Soun's pleas. It didn't help that Genma never thought women were all that important and probably couldn't pull Kimiko out of a lineup." Nodoka sighed then, but continued on: "Anyway, she came looking for Genma and me, but only found Genma at home. He advised her to listen to her husband and tried to dismiss her when she insisted on talking to me, having decided that Genma was a moron incapable of real communication." Nabiki began grinning now.

Nodoka smirked. "Let's just say that when I arrived home after having met Kimiko, I found Genma chained to a tree outside, hanging upside down from a stout branch. It turns out she had locked the chain with a padlock and told Genma she would only give me the key and no one else. If he wanted down, he had to tell her where I was. Then she would give me the key and I could free him."

"Very persuasive!" Nabiki laughed.

Nodoka continued: "Genma gave in and told her where I usually shopped and where I was likely to have lunch. Your mother snatched a photograph of me off one of the tables in the house and came looking for me. She stormed through the plaza I was in, checking every table – keep in mind that she was also pregnant at the time since Akane and Ranma were only born two weeks apart."

"Oh my," Nabiki marveled.

"Anyway, I had noticed this mad woman checking every table and working her way towards me. I didn't really think she was looking for me, but watching her progress gave me something to do. You see, I was worried that I hadn't felt the baby move yet and Genma was only echoing my own fears. Watching her gave me an excuse not to give in to panic," Nodoka said. "Finally she worked her way to my table and I saw the photograph in her hand first. 'Excuse me' I said crossly. 'But where did you get that from?'"

"As I raised my eyes to meet Kimiko's, I got the shock of my life – As soon as our gazes met, Ranma moved in the womb. Not just moved, but leaped and jumped. My eyes got real big and my hands clasped my stomach. It felt like a swarm of butterflies, followed by a ton of popcorn popping. I swear I felt his hands and feet everywhere. Even more incredible was the fact that I *knew* I was carrying a boy, beyond any doubt. Kimiko's face mirrored what I felt. Her eyes went wide as full moons and her mouth was stuck in an 'O'. She dropped the picture on the table and placed both hands to her own belly. Then she had to sit down immediately, keeping her hands on her belly. 'She's never moved like that before,' your mom whispered. I replied: 'My son has never moved at all until now.' Both of us just sat there in stunned wonderment for quite some time."

"Eventually, your mother took a deep breath and said: 'You must be Mrs. Saotome. I am Kimiko Tendo. My husband has arranged with your husband for a marriage between our children. I was coming here to protest that, but it seems I have been overruled. Maybe we should get to know each other.'"

"No way!" Nabiki burst out.

Nodoka chuckled again, "I'm very serious, Nabiki. That was how your mom introduced herself to me – and introduced Akane. It was also how I knew I needed to find your family when Genma stopped writing to me after Jusenkyo. I knew sooner or later Akane and Ranma would seek each other out."

"Ah, but would it be for fighting or for mating?" Nabiki asked mischievously.

Nodoka smiled, "I'm not sure there's a difference in their case…"

* * *

A/N: Next: The Doc's Visit

* * *

A/N: Grammar update on 5/16/14. A "Thank you" goes to Compucles for the help.


	4. The Doc's Visit

Chapter 4: The Doc's Visit

Tofu opened his eyes and peeked out of the warm blankets. Then he took stock of his situation. He was lying in his bed, and noted that his partner was missing. Judging from the smells in the air, she was in the kitchen frying up an American breakfast. It also seemed that she was happily singing to herself. Looking at the floor, he saw his clothes from last night and the little piece of lace that his fiancée had been wearing when she greeted him. He was also happily exhausted from last night's activities.

"O.K., this is unusual," he thought to himself. "I get the feeling I am being punished for something, but I have no idea what it is. I only wish I could figure it out so I could do it again. Especially since the punishment consists of my fiancée seducing me and then cooking me breakfast the next morning."

Still, he needed to get up. The clinic would open in two hours and he felt he needed to talk to Kasumi. If she was making a point, he knew he needed to find out what it was. Of course, he was wise enough to know that she wanted him to figure it out for himself. "That has to be the most unfair requirement women put on men – our brains do not work the same way," he thought, and then sighed :"I suppose it balances out the unfair requirements men put on women."

He tried to focus on the current situation, but last night's visit to Judge Sanu's house was also weighing on his mind. Kasumi's plan to save Nodoka depended on the judge being his irascible self, but Akane's pyrotechnic display had unnerved the judge and permanently skewed his world view. Tofu ran back over the visit in his mind…

* * *

It was Tuesday afternoon and Tofu wanted to get back to his clinic to finish cleaning up the traces of the potion Genma had used. He was debating actually just burning the bed out back (sheets and all), and then using a purification ritual on the room. He was also thinking of asking for Hideo's help – Fire and Earth should be able to banish the influence of Water and Air.

Ranma, Akane, and Ryoga had stopped finishing each others' sentences this morning and were starting to explore the hospital grounds independently (a good sign). All three were getting restless too (another good sign). Their vital signs were normal and Ranma was showing more and more Yang traits. The three young mages were also showing signs that their normal power levels were returning. Amazingly enough, despite Sunday's intense power release, none of them had done any permanent damage to themselves. The only lasting side effects seemed to be that the trio always knew where the others were and that Akane and Ranma were more attentive to Akari, treating her more like a sibling than a friend – Akari was often surprised at the discussions she was included in. Tofu was also pleased to note that the two couples still acted like couples in love, showing that their psyches were unaffected.

The bottom line was that Tofu didn't need to watch over them and had made plans to secure the clinic when his phone rang. He didn't recognize the number, but he answered it anyway: "Doctor Tofu speaking."

"Yes, Dr. Tofu. I need your help urgently. It seems my employer may be suicidal," a gravelly voice told him.

"Well, my specialty is not psychiatry. You may be better off with a specialist," Tofu told the voice.

"No doctor, I think you are the man for the job. You see, I'm calling on behalf of Judge Sanu," Ryuu told Tofu.

Tofu froze briefly and wondered how much Ryuu had put together. "Well," he thought. "I knew I would have to confront the two of them eventually. I was hoping the situation wouldn't quite be so serious. Looks like the clinic will have to wait." On the phone he said, "If you think I can be of service, I'll be over shortly."

* * *

Tofu parked his car and placed the physician's sign in the window so the traffic cops would leave it alone. Then he walked up to the condo the judge lived in. The unit was large by Tokyo standards, but not opulent. He rang the bell and was greeted by Ryuu. The assassin had not changed in the nearly fourteen years since Tofu last saw him. Ryuu was a short man in his early sixties. His face was as weathered as Hideo's, but he had bright inquisitive eyes instead of Hideo's introspective ones. Despite his stocky appearance, Tofu knew he could fight quite well. The doctor also wondered if the assassin still had the quick reflexes. Off-hand, Tofu would lay bets that he did.

Ryuu seemed to be scrutinizing the doctor as well. Finally he said: "You must be Doctor Tofu Ono. You look a good deal like your namesake."

The doctor flashed a quick smile and said: "I'm not sure that is a compliment, and my uncle would agree, but thank you anyway. And you would be Ryuu Maruyama. You are rather famous in the Ono family stories."

Ryuu's eyebrows arched, but otherwise he only said: "And how is your uncle, or should I say the Charlatan?" He let Tofu into the house and the doctor promptly pulled out his house shoes.

"He is well, but he is no longer the Charlatan. That title has moved on now. As he has told me, a man in his eighties cannot keep up with the youngsters of today," Tofu answered while changing shoes.

Ryuu seemed to be considering the implications of Tofu's statement, and then motioned for the doctor to follow him. The henchman noted: "None of your family would mention him to us before."

Tofu shrugged his shoulders. "And there's only so much I will say too. Indeed, there is little to say, but he is no longer the Charlatan. I think he would like you to know that he is well enough, but I will not say anything about his location or his current state. He's just an old man enjoying the few years he has left to him."

Ryuu smiled briefly at that, and then led Tofu to his patient. Tofu winced as he saw the judge. Sanu looked like he had aged fifty years instead of fourteen. The man sat in an old overstuffed chair with a cold cup of tea next to him, staring at nothing. He was dressed in pajamas and a robe. "Oh dear," Tofu thought. "He's become even more fixed in his ways and now he's seen something that destroyed them." The doctor thought for a few minutes and then turned to Ryuu and asked: "How long has he been like this?"

Ryuu answered: "Ever since yesterday morning. He hasn't moved and hasn't eaten. He did some heavy drinking Sunday, made himself sick, and slept it off. Since he woke up, he plopped himself there. Occasionally, he'll take a sip of tea, but that's it."

"Did anything happen on Sunday before the drinking?" Tofu asked (already knowing the answer).

"He was at Nerima General shortly after 12 noon," Ryuu said bluntly. Tofu saw Sanu shake at the mention of the hospital.

"Oh," Tofu answered. "I see. He has an acute case of Nerimaitis. This is worse than I usually see though."

"Excuse me?" Ryuu asked rather sharply.

"I said he has Nerimaitis. When one finally confronts Nerima, there are several reactions. The severest ones mirror the stages of grief. Your judge is caught in the first stage – Denial," Tofu said.

"The Stages of Grief are Denial, Anger, Bargaining, Depression, and Acceptance," Ryuu said. "Any way you can move him to the second stage? He sort of lives there permanently. Just getting him home again would be an improvement."

Tofu thought again. Finally he said: "Since he knows my uncle, there might be something I can do. But first, you need to lock up all the weapons."

"Excuse me?" Ryuu said again.

"If I am successful, he will try and kill me. I would rather he didn't succeed. Could you please lock up all the weapons?" Tofu responded.

"You have to be kidding me!" Ryuu nearly shouted.

"Do you want him back or not? He's not going to snap out of this without help. Your call," Tofu said sharply.

"Fine," the assassin grumbled. Ryuu went about the room locking cabinets and putting knives away.

Meanwhile, Tofu went over to a mirror and tied up his hair. Then he took an old hat belonging to the judge and put it on his head. "I need a trench coat," the doc requested from Ryuu.

Ryuu looked at him and seemed to catch on. "Black I assume?" At Tofu's nod, Ryuu left to get it. Tofu began pushing furniture into the center of the room. When Ryuu came back, he had the coat and a small jar of makeup. "Here," he told the doc. "You're too young. Smear this on your face and you'll look a bit more beaten." Tofu nodded and took the jar. Ryuu went over to the judge and pulled a sword cane out from under the judge's chair. "Nearly forgot this one," he said.

"How do I look?" Tofu asked.

"A dead ringer, Doc," Ryuu told him.

"I hope not. Let's find out if this works. Keep back," Tofu ordered. Then the doctor went over to the patient and crouched down in the judge's line of sight. In a rumbly voice, he said "Still think you know everything, eh Sanu?"

At first nothing happened. Then the judge slowly shook his head side-to-side and awareness seemed to be seeping back into his expression. Finally, the eyes focused on Tofu and a great anger blazed in them. "YOU!" the judge shouted as he dove forward at the doctor.

Tofu leaped nimbly out of the way as the judge fell flat on the floor. But the judge sprang up quickly and reached under his chair for his sword cane. When he found it missing, Sanu quickly grabbed a floor lamp and yanked the plug from the wall. "I knew you had to be behind this, Charlatan! I'm going to kill you!" Sanu yelled.

"Hey, it worked," Ryuu commented from the doorway.

Tofu dodged the swing of the floor lamp and ran around to the other side of the furniture pile. "We need to let the anger settle in and push out the denial," Tofu said conversationally.

"Little girls don't just burst into flame! This is one of your tricks!" Sanu shouted.

"She's not a little girl, Judge," Tofu said patiently while dodging another swing and moving to the other side of the pile again. "She'll be nineteen in January." The judge just gave a war cry and swung again.

"Not bad, Doc. Do you have any training?" Ryuu asked.

"I'm a martial artist," Tofu said. He leaped over the pile again as Sanu came around at him. "In Nerima, that has a special meaning."

"You mean those stories are true?" Ryuu asked surprised. "But, we haven't seen anything like that."

"What are you talking about?" Tofu said. "You saw three teenagers release three elemental spirits two days ago. You don't consider that unusual?" He dodged another swing.

"Yeah, well none of the stories mentioned that – just improbable stories of high powered supermen. Honestly, it sounded more like something out of a wrestling match invented by the tourist board to advertise the local sporting events," Ryuu replied.

"True," Tofu admitted. "It doesn't help that the Town Council actually invents some of the rumors to advertise the local martial arts tournaments. But, many of the stories are true." With that, Tofu reached out and stopped the judge's swing one-handed. The judge couldn't break Tofu's grip. "Are you ready to listen to reason, Judge Sanu?" he asked in a normal tone.

The judge hurled his end of the lamp down. "And what reasoning would that be, imposter? That the Laws of Physics no longer hold? That Science itself is a joke? That Chaos rules the Earth?" Sanu challenged.

"That Life does matter and there is much to Learn," Tofu shot back. "That Man is not God and doesn't understand everything. That four hundred years ago, people thought there was nothing left to be discovered, and yet there was. That now we think the same things and yet in four hundred years, people will look back on us primitives and laugh at our naivety." Tofu dropped the lamp and took off the coat. Then Tofu let his hair fall out of the hat. Ryuu tossed him a makeup cloth, and the judge watched as years fell off his nemesis's face.

"Who are you?" the judge snarled.

Tofu shrugged. "You knew my uncle, and he is very fond of you, despite your stubbornness. I am Doctor Tofu Ono. Many people around town just refer to me as 'The Doc'. I graduated medical school in 1982 and I've been practicing in Nerima for the last fifteen years. I am also a chiropractor and I'm trained in many of the more traditional medicines. I am also one of the many Martial Artists of Nerima." With that, he picked up the metal floor lamp and promptly bent it into a pretzel (Ranma would have been proud). Ryuu just whistled.

"That's a cheap trick!" Sanu shouted. "Why haven't we've seen more of that?"

"Because you are an outsider!" Tofu shouted back. "We have done quite well without you and don't need you poking at us. People don't trust you and have been hiding from you. Apparently, we were right! You just caught a glimpse of the Truth and you folded in its face! Meanwhile, the rest of us just took notes, made appropriate plans and moved on with our lives while you cowered in the dark! You are weak! Only the strong in Spirit survive in Nerima, Judge Sanu!"

The judge looked like he was caught in an apoplectic fit. Ryuu just drawled, "Interesting bedside manner you have there, Doc."

"It seems to be working," Ono shrugged while looking critically at his patient.

"How dare you!" Sanu finally shouted. "I have been in more dangerous situations in the Name of the Law than you have years, Doctor! I was serving the Emperor long before you were born! And you dare question me?!"

"Prove it!" said Tofu. "Tell me what you saw two days ago!"

Sanu stopped cold at that. "I couldn't have seen that…" he said as he sat down again, the fire fading in his eyes.

"The papers say a natural gas line exploded on Sunday near the hospital. Did you see that?" Tofu prompted.

The judge's eyes hardened. "No," he said. "No," he said again a little stronger. "NO! THAT'S NOT WHAT I SAW! There are no natural gas lines in that area. I CHECKED!" he yelled.

Tofu shrugged. "What did you see?" Tofu asked firmly.

The judge sighed and put his head in his hands. After a few moments, he began to speak softly: "I saw a young lady who had been crying, attacked by a horde of boys. I saw her raise her hands and knock them all down with a clap of thunder. I saw one of the boys tell the girl that her Love was dead and I saw absolute despair on her face. I saw the girl lift her face to the sky with tears rolling down her cheeks and explode in a column of fire." Sanu lifted his face from his hands and looked straight ahead.

"Then what did you see?" Tofu pressed.

"I saw a crazy person, a person who thought she/he was a cat fly out of the hospital and run straight into that pillar of fire. I saw the pillar rise to show the girl still crying and whole despite the fire. The boy/girl grabbed the young lady and the fire turned into blue light, blazing its way skyward. Then I saw a boy I did not know …" the judge paused for a second at a loss for words.

"Ryoga. Ryoga Hibiki is the boy's name," Tofu supplied.

The judge looked at Tofu. "I saw the boy run to embrace the other two and everything exploded in white light. I thought I was dead. I remember seeing ghosts, but I don't really understand that. When the light faded, I saw the three teenagers half-slumped on the ground dead. After that, everything else is sort of a blur. I seem to remember Kuno gloating over me, but I'm not sure."

"From what I understand, Toshio Kuno was there, but he was not gloating – he just lost a major battle," Tofu told him. "And the young people are not dead. They are in the hospital healing. I expect them to make a full recovery."

Sanu shook his head. "But I thought I saw their souls leave their bodies. I've never believed in the soul, yet I swore I saw their souls."

"That may be the case, but if it's true, then their spirits have returned. Ranma Saotome, Akane Tendo, and Ryoga Hibiki are currently in Nerima hospital healing," Tofu repeated.

"That's not possible. People don't return from the dead," Sanu said in an absolute flat tone.

"Actually, these three have, but not on Sunday. No one died on Sunday. Not the idiot boys who charged Akane. Not Mrs. Saotome who was at ground zero. Not Kuno, who did his best to stop the explosion. Not the three teenagers," Tofu said in a clear tone. Then his voice turned harsher as he said: "And not you, Judge Sanu. Now it's time to walk among the living again."

The judge's eyes began to fill with anger again. Tofu went in for the kill as he said: "You were brought to Nerima because someone thought you were strong enough to stand up against the chaos and make some clear judgments. I guess they were wrong. My advice to you is to run away. You're too old to learn something new. Too old to take on a new challenge. Go find yourself a nice retirement home and wait for death. It won't take long!" With that, Tofu turned on his heel, grabbed his things, and walked out of the room toward the door.

The doctor smiled to himself as the cursing began before he was halfway down the hallway. "Old?!" the doctor heard. "Old?! Of all the…" The words transitioned into a stream of loud cursing.

Ryuu caught up with Tofu before the doctor reached the door. "Yo! Doc! Wait a minute!" As Tofu turned to the assassin, Ryuu said: "You said the title of 'Charlatan' had moved on. Who did it move on to?"

"Good night, Mr. Maruyama. I think you'll find his Honor back to himself by the morning," Tofu replied while continuing to the door and switching shoes again.

"Good night, Doctor Ono," Ryuu said.

* * *

Tofu's mind came back to the present as his fiancée walked into the bedroom. Two things immediately grabbed his attention. The first was the platter with two plates of sausages, bacon, eggs, and fruits on it. The second was the lovely full apron she was wearing – and not a stitch else. "Ah, Isamu can open the clinic," he thought.

"Good morning!" Kasumi said cheerfully as she set the platter on his end table.

"Well, it is now," he answered her. "Decisions, decisions…" he thought. He quickly made up his mind and snatched his Love off her feet back into the bed.

Kasumi laughed as she lay next to him. "Ah, ah, ah…" she said. "You have a job to do, Doctor," she added while tapping his forehead with her finger.

"That settles it," Tofu replied. "I am being punished for something."

Kasumi just shrugged her shoulders (which delighted Tofu) with her serene smile firmly in place. "Maybe, maybe not. What have you done that merits punishment?" She stretched and took a coffee cup off the tray handing it to her husband-to-be, and then took one for herself, sitting up a little.

"Let's see," Tofu pondered out loud. "Does the punishment fit the crime?" he asked.

"If there is a crime…" she answered.

"Let's see. The most unusual thing that happened last night was…" he started. After a moment, a puzzled look crossed his face. "You're upset that I took the lead the few times we made love?" he asked.

"'Upset' is too strong a word," she answered. "*Way* too strong. I am very happy with how things turned out. I'm also happy with how last night turned out."

"Ah, I see. You wanted to show me that you could take the lead too," he stated.

Kasumi took a sip of coffee and pursed her lips thoughtfully. "Keep going…" she told him.

Tofu took a sip of his own coffee and reflected on his fiancée. After a minute, he cocked an eyebrow and said: "What you really want is for me to acknowledge that you are my partner, not my subordinate."

"Ding, ding, ding. Give the man a prize," she laughed lightly.

"Well, that's an easy one," he said, taking another sip of coffee. "In our relationship and in all matters of money, household, family, and friends, you are my partner," he stated.

Her smile faded a little. "Why the qualifiers?" she asked.

"Because I have a job to do and you will not tell me how to do it," he said firmly. "I will listen to your opinion, but, on some matters, it will not have equal weight with mine. I'm sorry Love; I still am who I am. Also, you are marrying a soldier. You're going to have to accept that. And, on Sunday afternoons, you are my student, and you'll stay my student until you master your Power."

A thoughtful look crossed her face as she processed that. "I'm sorry too. You did warn me and you are right. I did accept that and I still do accept that and will continue to accept that."

"Besides," Tofu added. "In the future, you will probably have your own job. Unless you work for me, you will not want me to tell you how to do your job."

The smile grew back to its former brightness. "I'm not sure I could work for you. You're pretty hard on your employees," she said with a twinkle in her eyes. "I get to hear the other side of things you know."

"And that would be?" he prompted.

"Ask them yourself," she laughed. "Kasumi Tendo does not betray confidences."

"I suppose…" he reluctantly agreed and took another sip. He looked at her: "Are we good?"

She nodded. "We were never bad, Tofu. Yes, we are fine."

"Oh, good," he said placing his cup on the table and then reaching for her.

"Oh no you don't," she said quickly and handed him his plate. "You're the boss. You need to open this clinic."

"Yep. I'm definitely being punished," he muttered.

She laughed and popped a piece of bacon in his mouth. "Behave yourself and maybe I'll give you a chance to get even tonight…"

* * *

A/N: Next up: Genma's Attorney


	5. Genma's Attorney

Chapter 5: Genma's Attorney

"Well, well, well…If it isn't my old friend, Genma Uchida – or should I say Saotome?" the lawyer's voice rang out snidely. "You look like shit."

Genma made a sour face. "Good to see you too, Ine." Then he sighed and said, "Thanks for coming."

"I couldn't resist, Genma. It's been over twenty years since you gloated to me that you were going to marry that crazy Saotome girl and live the good life," Eiji Ine said. "I just had to see how you ended up. While I pictured you in jail, I never imagined that you'd be here wrapped in bandages with a cast on one leg and another on the other foot. You always portrayed yourself as a martial arts god. You could usually back it up too. And before you start with one of those stories, I don't believe the concoction you told the cops about a glass plate truck."

Genma looked meaningfully at the guard standing at the door. Ine looked at the officer and politely said, "I'm his lawyer, you need to leave, Officer. Please."

"He's a very dangerous man, Counselor," the officer warned. "You might want some protection."

"I'm the only lawyer in the country who will even talk to him without assuming he's automatically guilty. Assaulting your own son doesn't sit well with most folks – not that I'm all right with it either. Still, I'll be fine," Ine responded. The officer shrugged and left the room. Ine turned to Genma and said with a little concern: "You really do look like shit. Have they been giving you your pain medications? They are not allowed to withhold them."

Genma sighed. "I wish. I've been having trouble sleeping since the accident – too many nightmares. Most of them involve…"

Ine held up his hand for a second. He then opened his brief case and took out a little device. He turned it on and white noise filled the room. At Genma's raised eyebrows, Ine just said: "The police are allowed to monitor and record any conversation you have except with your attorney. That box jams the electronics they may 'forget' to turn off when a lawyer is present. While the recorded conversation cannot be used in a Court of Law, the Prosecutor can use it to plan a counter strike."

"That should be illegal," Genma muttered.

Ine laughed at Genma. "It is my friend. It is," he said. "But first you have to prove it happened. You've been watching too many American crime dramas. This is not the United States. This is Japan with one of the 'finest' court systems on the planet. Why, we have a 99% conviction rate here. The police never file charges unless they are sure they have you."

"Whatever," Genma said. "How soon can you get me out of here?"

"Never," Ine said.

"What?!" Genma shouted.

"Keep your voice down," Ine warned. "The audio jammer is only so good."

Genma brought himself under control with effort. "What do you mean you can't get me out? I thought they had to let me go after 72 hours!" he demanded.

"Again, you have been watching too much TV. That's in America. While there is a similar rule here in Japan, any judge can extend that period by ten days without effort. If the police can show probable cause, they can get another ten days – I've rarely heard of a judge deny either action. Even without good evidence, they could hold you for 23 days," Ine explained.

"So, I'm stuck here for another twenty days?!" Genma demanded again.

"Oh no, my friend. I said without good evidence. You're screwed," Ine told him.

"WHAT?!" Genma screamed. Ine looked pointedly at the device again and Genma settled down. "What evidence?" Genma asked harshly. "I am a martial artist. My son is a martial artist. This is just a training exercise that went awry!"

"Yeah, nice try, but it's not going to work. The evidence says otherwise. They have you on assault easily and the Prosecutor's thinking about attempted murder. They really don't like you in this town."

Genma eyes went very wide and his voice seemed to die in his throat. "Murder?" he whispered.

"They tested that bottle you hit your son with. It showed positive for arsenic as well as atropine, hyoscine, and hyoscyamine," Ine said.

"What the hell are those?" Genma asked hoarsely.

"The active components in belladonna," Ine told him. "Anyone drinking that bottle would have died."

"Ranma didn't drink it, I just poured the contents over him like Mara told me," Genma insisted.

Ine did a double take. "Like who told you?" he asked.

"Mara. You know – Mara," Genma said.

"Mara? The herbalist in our village?" Ine quizzed.

"Yeah," Genma insisted. "She was here on Friday gather supplies in town."

"O.K…." Ine drawled. "You have to find a better story, Genma. First off, why she would ever be this far south is a mystery. Second off, how she managed to climb out of the grave and visit you is going to puzzle the most open minded judge."

Genma stopped and stared at Ine. "What?" he asked.

"Genma, you really should keep in touch with the home town a bit more. Mara died five years ago – I went to her funeral. We have a new young and pretty herbalist now, and this one gets along with the local temples a whole lot better," Ine said.

"The bitch faked her death and built a new persona," Genma thought. "Great, just bloody great." After a few second of thought, he said out loud: "Fine. The herbalist I bought the potion from said I was to just pour over Ranma."

"And what was the magic potion suppose to do?" Ine asked with a raised eyebrow.

"It was suppose to give me control of my son again," Genma said.

"So why did you take the bottle and smash it in his face?" Ine pursued.

Genma looked at Ine with a disbelieving expression. "Excuse me?"

"I saw the video tape and I've seen the photograph of the bruises across your son's face. It's a wonder you didn't embed glass in his mouth," Ine said.

"Turn that thing up," Genma said pointing at the audio jammer. As soon as Ine did, Genma said in a harsh whisper, "What the hell are you talking about? (A) I didn't hit Ranma in the mouth, he picked up those bruises another way! (B) What video tape?! I disabled the video cameras! I knew Ono had observational cameras in the building! I fried everything!"

"Ah, at least I'm starting to get the truth now," Ine said with satisfaction. "You missed the cameras – and everything else. This Ono has to be the most paranoid individual on the planet. He had lightning arresters on everything, and I mean everything. Whatever you used took out the arresters (speaking of which, you are being charged with their destruction and the damage to the front door too), but it didn't hurt any of the electronics in the building. Like I said, the owner has to be extremely paranoid – he's prepared for a direct strike."

"No," Genma thought sourly, "he's just prepared for an angry Akane." To Ine, he asked: "You're one up on me – what did you see on the video tape?"

Ine rattled off: "I saw you enter the clinic building shortly after the janitor packed it in for the day. You made yourself at home in the office of a Doctor Ando. I saw your red-haired son enter the building and then the cops jumped ahead to show your son sleeping soundly in an empty clinic room. I couldn't see his face, as he was turned away from the camera. I saw you enter the room, take a bottle from inside your gi, walk over to the bed, and swing your arm from behind to smash the bottle in your son's face. Your son woke up and threw you back. He then seemed to writher in pain and began stalking you on all fours like some sort of jungle cat, roaring and growling all the while. You fled then, busting out the front door of the clinic. Your son chased you out the door while running on all fours. I was impressed by the speed he made, but I guess that goes with being an acrobat and a martial artist."

"That didn't happen…" Genma started.

"Excuse me?" Ine challenged. "I saw your face in the room on the tape when the attack happened."

"But I never struck Ranma!" Genma hissed. "Someone tampered with the tape!"

"Well if they did, they did a good job. The metadata was perfect," Ine said dismissingly.

"The what?"

"Metadata. When a security camera records something, it places extra information on the tape. Think of it as a time code, but it's actually much more complicated. It's not known to lay people. Hell, the cops didn't know about it until I showed them. Unfortunately for you, the metadata showed no break in the patterns. I had them run over the actual strike several times. Any expert witness is going to say no one tampered with the tape."

Genma lay his head back in shock. "That couldn't have been me and Ranma on the tape," he muttered.

"Well then, they got a bald guy exactly your shape, wearing the gi you're always seen about the town in, with your glasses, and your nose attacking what looks to be a red-haired girl. Your son is a hermaphrodite, right?" At Genma's nod, he continued: "All the cops in the precinct recognized you and Ranma on the tape. I haven't seen you in twenty years and I recognized you."

"Crap, crap, crap…" Genma muttered. "What else do they have?" he asked.

"Well, not that they need it, but they have the broken weapon with your fingerprints on it. They have the trace chemicals collected from the glass shards, and apparently they now have the bed as well," Ine told him.

"Huh?"

"They confiscated the bed your son was sleeping on. The police got lucky – Ono was planning to burn it last night, but someone needed a doctor yesterday evening and he didn't get around to it. When the police showed up this morning, the office manager gave them free reign, and they took the bed. They plan on performing a chemical analysis on different parts of the bed and the sheets. The analysis will take time, but they should have no problem keeping you here while they are awaiting the results.

"Is there anything in my favor?" Genma asked morosely.

"I don't think they will pursue the murder charges if you confess to assault," Ine told him. "But I'd do it quickly if I was you. My guess is they will then hold you for a few months, have the first court appearance, hold you for a few more months, accept your guilty plea, and then sentence you to about five years. You'll be out in two with exemplary behavior."

"What?" Genma cried. "Don't most people pay a fine and get a suspended sentence for assault?"

"Drunks get that," Ine said bluntly. "You were perfectly sober. People who emotionally flake out temporarily get that. You showed signs of premeditation – not temporary insanity. And they all have to show great remorse. You tried to run and hide from the cops – not a sign of remorse. You also have a bad reputation in this town. As I said, they don't like you here."

"Can I make a case that I was afraid for my life? That Ranma was going to kill me unless I took him out first?" Genma tried.

Ine shook his head. "I already looked at that angle. There are a lot of character witnesses out there that will dispute it. You have no evidence, and no filing with the police. To top it off, there's a restraining order out there sighting *you* as the danger to your wife and your son. It was never processed properly, and I can get it thrown out, but your son has just spent three days in the hospital thinking he was a cat. It's widely believed you caused the insanity by being abusive to your hermaphrodite son and you're caught on tape as causing the latest psychotic break. Plus, you are on record as draining the family finances and leaving your wife and son destitute. A judge will never entertain that Ranma is the issue here."

"What if I can get Ranma to drop the charges?" Genma asked desperately.

"Again this is not TV. Ranma's not the one prosecuting you and no one is expecting him to testify – he was out of his mind when you attacked him. The government of Japan is prosecuting you," Ine answered.

"This is insane! I poured a potion on him! I did not attack him!" Genma screamed from his bed. "He put me in the hospital and I'm the one looking at nearly three to six years behind bars!"

"Actually, the police investigated Ranma," Ine said offhandedly.

Genma froze midway through his ranting. "Say what?" he asked.

"The police investigated Ranma because they thought he killed you. They were afraid that his insanity was dangerous to the public. Your son has been surrounded by cops for the last three days and they have been investigating him any time the doctors' backs were turned. They managed to check him everywhere for any sign of your blood, for any sign of your skin (or anyone else's for that matter) under his nails or on his clothes, for anyway he could have inflicted that damage to you. He's come up perfectly clean, much to their relief. Ranma never laid a hand on you. The only thing they found was ground in road dirt and park loam. Plus you've already blamed a traffic accident on your injuries and the cops cannot disprove it."

Genma stared up at the ceiling for a while. Ine just waited him out. Finally, Genma said: "I am going to be convicted." Ine nodded his head. "I need to start managing the damage. What's the best way to minimize the sentence?"

"There we go," Ine said satisfied. "I knew you would stop playing games with me sooner or later. You're going to have to plead guilty first off." Genma just nodded his head. "Secondly, you need to get your wife and son to appeal to the judge on your behalf. Then we can probably get back to a fine and a suspended sentence. You'll have to stay in prison until your case is resolved, but nine months is better than six years. And the more cooperative you are, the faster your case will come up on the docket."

"And that's the only way this can go?' Genma asked looking thoroughly depressed.

"Yes, the police have you. Best you can hope for is a good word from your family." Ine paused and then said the eight magic words: "You are totally at Ranma's and Nodoka's mercy." Ine saw them sink in as Genma let out a sigh. Ine knew the words would have their predictable effect soon, so he asked: "I there anything you'd like me to attend to? There's also the matter of my fee?"

"I have the money hidden away," Genma lied. "When I get out of here, you can pick me up and we will collect it. This way I know you won't forget about me."

"Hmph. Same old Genma. All right, I'll be your ride. But you'll pay me for the pick-up too," Ine snorted. He reached out and picked up his magic box. "Talk to you soon."

* * *

The woman in the red Ferrari 550 Maranello watched as Ine left the jail and then she discretely pulled out into the slow moving traffic. The car had tinted windows, partially hiding the driver, but even so, she and the car were getting a lot of glances. She followed Ine for about three blocks and then pulled into an open parking spot a little in front of him. Ine immediately got in the passenger side and the car pulled out into traffic, merging seamlessly.

"How did it go?" the blond woman asked. She was a tall woman with a very athletic build. The lady wore a black jumpsuit spun from a no-nonsense durable fabric, looking like a race car driver. The black sunglasses completed the look.

"We got problems," Ine told her.

"Duh! The team wouldn't be here if we didn't," she commented. "Anything in particular?"

"Just listen in, sweetheart, and you'll hear," he said.

The blond woman dope slapped him for the 'sweetheart' comment. She knew he only did that to piss her off. "Forget it, jackass. I like them big and stupid. And if Kasumi hears that, you'll never have to worry about testicular cancer."

"This is true," Ine replied. He pulled out the phone and dialed the number. The woman listened to him speak, but couldn't hear the other end. "It's Fox," Tofu's voice said from Ine's mouth. "Listen up. I think we have an immortal on the playing field, so you have to watch your back." Ine listened for a moment. "Stop swearing and listen. I think it's the herbalist." Another pause. Tofu's voice then said. "Genma thinks the old one visited him last Friday. Your notes said she died five years ago, and the new one gets along with the town better. Is she about now?" Ine listened for a bit. "No, there are no Kitsunes in the area." Another pause. "A female ogre? It's possible. It certainly makes more sense than some of the other options. If so, just stay out of her way." He listened further. "Did I get your last report?" Ine looked at the driver who tapped a laptop on the dashboard. "Ciren says we have it. I'll look at it shortly. Thanks by the way." A shorter pause and a smile. "Yes, I'll make sure the deadbeats pay you." Ciren cracked a smile at that too. "Make sure you beat the crap out of Happosai if you see him." One last pause. "Yes, luck to you too. Call me at the appointed time. Out."

Ine shimmered and Tofu sat in his placed dressed in his gi and wearing a blue T-shirt underneath. Ciren took an on-ramp for the highway. "There's an ogre magi in Genma's hometown?" she asked.

"Looks that way. Daran has seen signs of ogres in the area. The herbalist is not there right now, which means she could be in our neighborhood. She really might have paid Genma a visit last week."

"Crap. At least we have warning," Ciren said.

Tofu nodded and dialed another number. Ciren listened in again. "Mausu? Tofu. Don't be offended but I have to ask a question. Did you screw with the tape from the clinic?" Ciren stifled a laugh. Tofu paused as he listened then chuckled. "Only if it amused you. Are you sure about that metadata?" A quick pause as Tofu listened and then drawled: "Sure. You're fine if I question your ethics, but heaven help me if I question your skills." Ciren just smirked at that. Tofu listened a little more and said: "Fine, I believe you. I think there's another player on the field and he's technologically savvy." Tofu listened a little more and then slumped in his seat and held a hand to his head. "Duh. All right, I'm an idiot."

"Told you!" Ciren sing-songed.

Tofu just glared at her and continued talking to Mausu. Ciren listened as he told Mausu about the meeting with Genma. Finally, Tofu said his goodbyes and hung up. "So, why are you an idiot this time?" Ciren asked.

"Because Mausu immediately told me who messed with the tape – the same guy who messed with the security tapes of half a dozen businesses and managed to somehow corrupt over fifty phones to make it look like Tatewaki Kuno was never in Nerima on Sunday," Tofu answered.

"Toshio Kuno? How and why?" Ciren asked surprised.

"I don't know the answer to either," Tofu responded. "It's easy to edit someone out of a tape, but it's hard to change the action of someone present on the tape. It's really difficult to not mess up the metadata when you do either. Mausu thinks a few of Kuno's companies are capable of doing it though." He paused for a moment and then said: "I just got an idea as far as the why; he has an interest in keeping Akane, Ranma, and Ryoga healthy and whole. Maybe he thinks Genma is detrimental to that goal."

"I don't really want to say this," Ciren told him. "But I agree with Toshio in that regard." She leaned forward and pushed the laptop toward Tofu. "Meanwhile, you better look at the reports Mausu and Daran sent."

Tofu nodded and took the laptop. After a few minutes, he exclaimed: "Gods! They sent the last report yesterday! They gathered this much info in an additional day?"

Ciren laughed at him. "Duh! They're professional spies, Fox. What did you think they did for a living?"

"Never mind!" he growled. He continued to read as she took the off-ramp toward the hospital. "Shit!" he burst out.

"What's wrong?" Ciren asked.

"Pull over now!" he ordered angrily.

Ciren looked confused but did as she was told (Tofu was the team leader after all). As soon as she had the car stopped, Ono nearly threw the laptop at her and ordered "Read the highlighted part and call Olaf! Tell him to grab Taro and get the hell out of there NOW! Don't tell me you can't! I know you have the number. Give him mine and tell him to call my burner at 9PM his time tonight from his new location! NO EXCEPTIONS!" With that, he got out of the car and began cursing under his breath. Ciren knew him well enough to leave him alone for a few minutes.

Ciren read the highlighted part and echoed his "Shit!" comment. "I wish Mausu would've given me a heads up. I hope he gives Kasumi a heads up…"

She pulled out her phone and called Olaf. Olaf answered with his familiar "Hey Babe."

He was the only one of the team she let get away with that. "Yo. We have a problem. Fox wants you to grab the boy and get away from the Amazons. Take cover somewhere for a little bit."

"Fox knows you have my number?" the giant rumbled.

"Don't worry about it, Love," she answered. "He is who he is. You're to call him tonight at 9PM your time to coordinate new orders."

"Ciren, what's wrong?" he asked knowing she wouldn't lie to him.

"Ah crap, don't do this to me," she half-pleaded.

"He knows you'll tell me. That's why he had you call," Olaf told her.

Ciren sighed: "Toshio Kuno has put a ten billion yen bounty on the head of the Amazon Henna."

There was silence on the other end of the line for a few moments. Then Olaf said: "It wasn't his fault."

She sighed again. "I know that. You know that. The Council knows that. The Elders know that. Everyone but Tofu knows that."

"Tell him I'm leaving. No one is going to override his orders. You need to warn Kasumi," Olaf said.

"I will," she promised. She gave him Tofu's number and hung up after saying goodbye. Then she got out of the car and watched Tofu stand leaning against the side of the car with his eyes closed.

After a couple of minutes, she walked around the car and sat on the hood. The heat of the car engine had no effect through the jumpsuit she was wearing. Finally she said: "How long will you beat yourself up for surviving that battle?"

Tofu never opened his eyes. "She killed over four hundred people that day," he said quietly. "That doesn't include the village she butchered to get the blood power."

"I'm aware, Fox," Ciren told him. "By all accounts, you fought like a berserker. You drained your power dry."

His eyes opened and Ciren could see the emotion blazing in them. "Just like everyone else," Tofu snapped. "There was nothing special about me, but I'm here and all my comrades are dead."

"She broke your back, snapped your limbs, and crushed your feet and hands in anger when she found you had no power to take and your soul was beyond her. Then she broke your ribs and left you to die slowly. You lived in spite of her. Will you let her take your spirit? Now? After you've fought so hard to restore it?" Ciren challenged. He glared at her, but she continued: "You survived because you were meant to survive – you still had things to do in this world. You had a city that needed you, and a young woman who loved you, even if she didn't know it at the time. You also shamed and inspired the Kitsune people who had sacrificed you by sending you to serve the Council, forcing the Kitsunes to truly join the fight. It is by wits and intelligence Henna will fall, not by force. And your survival silenced the nay-sayers on the Council who said it was impossible to stand against her and live. By surviving, you will accomplish your revenge." (1)

"So why me?" he demanded.

Inspiration hit her then as she said: "Because you are of two worlds. The mortal immortal. You had used your power up, and she couldn't steal your soul because you were not fully human. Her spells failed against your spirit because she couldn't identify your spirit, quarter-breed." His eyes widened and he slump against the car as the truth hit him. Ciren marveled that she had actually found the answer he had been looking for all this time. Her face took on a smug expression as she said: "Sorry, moron. Looks like there is something special about you."

Finally Tofu said, "Yet more people will die fighting her now."

"Maybe yes, maybe no. The assassins are likely to use long range weapons against her. They probably won't be able to touch her, but she won't be able to close in on them either, no matter how many zombies she calls up. That will have to do, and will probably weaken her. Any way you slice it, it's still not your fault. Nor was the battle you barely survived – you were just one of the foot soldiers there. You had no say in the battle. You just did what you were told."

He closed his eyes again and she watched him for several minutes. Finally, he lifted his face to the sky and blew out his breath. "All right, that's enough self-pity. Can you drop me off at the hospital? Genma's shame at being humbled is likely to snap before dinner. I want to be in place before his counter-strike happens."

"Yes, your Lordship" she mocked, sliding off the car. He gave her a one finger salute as he climbed back in the passenger side, but she just laughed.

"What are you going to do?" he asked as she got in.

"I'm swinging by the Cat Café and kidnapping Mousse," she told him.

Tofu raised an eyebrow at her as she pulled back out into traffic. "He isn't that big and he isn't that stupid, Lady. Why him?"

"I'm hoping to knock some sense into him," Ciren said. "He can do a lot better than that bimbo. I'll take him over to the Tendo dojo and run him through his paces. With any luck, I'll piss off the bimbo. She'll either try to cozy up to him or shun him for a week. I can use either way she plays it. The old hag will just see me as a mother bird trying to save the lost chick – she won't interfere."

"Sounds like you are taking him under your wing…" Tofu said, busting her chops a little.

Ciren just shrugged though. "Everyone needs a hobby. With the Storm coming, I'll probably be stationed in Nerima for a bit, so fixing him up with a proper girl can be my hobby."

"And what makes you so sure that he'll go with you? He's wise enough to know that you are beyond him, Lady," Tofu mocked.

Ciren grinned evilly as she patted the dashboard and said: "Yes, but there isn't a teenage male alive who can resist this car…"

* * *

Olaf closed the phone and continued to watch Henna's house from the top of the cliff at one of the few places it was visible. He didn't want to tell Ciren (or Tofu) right now that Taro was in the house and had been for the last four hours. As expected, Henna's wards didn't work against Taro's cursed shape because of the spells the Kitsunes had sung about him and the fact that the lad was a mismatch of legendary and normal creatures. That and the fact that the lad *accepted* his cursed shape – he was proud of it. So long as Taro didn't break or attack anything, he was unnoticed. Olaf just held his breath and prayed that all the self-control they had beaten into Taro would stay with the boy.

Olaf knew where Henna was – she was trashing Jusendo in a royal rage for some reason. The Guides had wisely fled for their lives, not putting up any defense. The bitch had barbecued four of them anyway. "One day soon Henna, you'll pay for that," Olaf thought grimly. "As well as a lot of other things, including the discotec in Yushu that you burned down." Olaf, Daran, and Taro had abandoned their posts to help rescue survivors of the fire in that city. Over one hundred people had been burned alive to feed Henna power and another hundred and fifty trapped for a slow death – or it would have been a slow death except for the rescuers. The Council had given the trio a mild tongue lashing for abandoning their posts, but that was it – even they were not as heartless as Henna. "I'll see you burn in Hell yet, bitch," Olaf thought.

Right now, Olaf was worried about the boy. It had been four hours. The mission was of paramount importance, and a lot was riding on Taro's shoulders. Olaf and Daran (before Daran had been called to Hokkaido) had stressed to Taro that the mission was top priority, even over survival. All the same, Olaf wanted Taro out of the house safely as well – Olaf wasn't heartless either.

Finally, Taro's beacon began sounding. Olaf checked the locator and was surprised to find it pointing ten kilometers away from the house. After checking to make sure echoes were not responsible for the signal, Olaf picked up the two backpacks and began a steady trot in the direction of the beacon. Within fifteen minutes, he saw Taro's bull shape lying next to a cold water spring surrounded by a copse of trees. Taro was out cold. Nestled in his octopus tentacles was a plastic liter jar sealed tight with wax (as the boy had been taught) and filled with green water. Olaf resisted the urge to shout in triumph. Instead he carefully took the jar away from the unconscious form and put it safely away. The mission completed, he then tended to the lad.

Taro had scratched 'hot water' in the dirt with a hoof, so Olaf pulled out his thermos and poured hot water over the bull shape. As Taro resumed his human form, he started to come around and began half-consciously checking for the jar before even opening his eyes. "I have it, lad," Olaf told him. "You did it."

Taro slowly opened his eyes. "Olaf?" he questioned. At the giant's nod, Taro closed them again, but said: "I found her. I found the Sprite. She nearly drained me of my Chi completely, but let me fill the jar first. Then she tossed me in a bath tub and I ended up here. I could barely get out of the pool. Are we safe?"

"As good a place as any," Olaf answered.

"Good, because I have nothing left. She was hungry. I don't think I'll be able to move for a bit. My bull shape will be useless for a while," Taro said.

"I have some beef broth. Do you want me to heat it up?" Olaf asked. Taro barely nodded his head, but Olaf saw it, so he started to get out the necessary supplies. Olaf decided that some encouragement was in order, so he said: "You did it, lad. You fulfilled the bargain with the Council – you can get your name and go home." (2)

Taro wanly smiled. "I have my name now. Right after she drained me and promised me that I would live, she whispered to me what my name was in the Book of Life," he whispered in turn.

Olaf raised an eyebrow and asked: "So what am I to call you now?"

"I am Pathkeeper Taro," he whispered with pride. "That's a good name to have for my tribe."

"Welcome Pathkeeper. I'm pleased to make your acquaintance," the giant rumbled good-naturedly. Taro smiled a little, but said nothing else, so Olaf continued to heat the broth.

After a couple of bowls and a little rest, Taro managed to pull himself up to sit against a tree. Olaf let him be until Taro asked: "Olaf, do you think the Council will pay me if I offer to keep working with you and the others?" The lad's eyes were closed.

"Your life is in front of you, lad. Why don't you go home, find a nice girl, and make lots of babies?" Olaf advised.

Taro shook his head lightly with his eyes still closed. "I'm a proud monster, but Henna is an abomination. That house is an abomination. She can't be allowed to live. There will be no peace in China, in the world, as long as she is alive. She has to go," he said quietly.

Olaf sighed. "I was afraid of this. Now you know why the rest of us are fighting. Sleep, lad. Get some rest. If you still feel like this after you wake up, we will talk then."

Taro just nodded and faded off to sleep.

* * *

Footnotes:

(1) Now you know what (or rather who) trashed Tofu in Chapter 4 of "Kasumi's Fate" (actually Chapter 5 on the FanFiction site).

(2) In the first chapter of "Tofu's Return", it was learned that Happosai had sold Taro's naming rights to the mysterious Council.

* * *

A/N:

Ciren and Olaf were introduced in Part 8 of "The Date - The Flip Side". Mausu (or Mouse) was introduced in Part 9 of the same story. Daran was introduced in Chapter 2 of "The Date". My profile has some quick details on them if you are curious.

Next up: Judge Sanu meets with Ranma Saotome to answer "A Question of Magic". See you then!


	6. A Question of Magic

Chapter 6: A Question of Magic

Ryuu watched his employer with a careful eye. So far, things were looking up this morning. Sanu had detected the "yellow slime" in the omelet this morning and thrown it at Ryuu, recognizing it as an insult (which it was). The assassin used slime (which was actually a special organophosphate Ryuu concocted) anytime he thought the judge was off his game. Successful "slime" poisoning was impossible to pull off. High enough doses for acute poisoning were usually detectable before the target consumed too much. If the intense garlic smell didn't give it away, the severe abdominal pain would – a potent reminder for the target to be more on their guard.

The judge had called the office and reported that he wasn't coming in yet, but said that he would be in tomorrow. He had gotten showered and cleaned up though. Then he had settled in his chair with a collection of Japanese folk stories and legends. He was making notes and cross referencing things on his laptop from time-to-time. Occasionally, he would utter the word "preposterous", but other times he would look thoughtfully at a story and ponder it.

"Well, well," Ryuu thought. "I never thought I'd see the day when Isao ever considered something beyond the five senses." He was careful not to disturb the judge for most of the morning, even skipping the 11AM assassination attempt.

Finally at 1PM, the front door bell rang, and Ryuu answered it to discover Judge Kato waiting on the door step. "Your Honor!" Ryuu said with surprise. "I'm sorry to keep you waiting! I was not expecting you!"

Judge Arata Kato stepped in to the foyer and changed his shoes. "Good afternoon, Mr. Maruyama. I need to speak with Judge Sanu. I'm afraid something has come up regarding the case of Ranma Saotome that I need to discuss with him. Could you please see if he is free?"

"Certainly, your Honor. Please come into the drawing room," Ryuu answered. Once there he indicated for Kato to have a seat and asked: "May I get you something?"

"Yes, please," Kato answered. "I would like a drop of cognac if you don't mind. Not the best stuff, but rather what Judge Sanu would drink on a peaceful night."

Ryuu was a little surprised by the request, but granted it. He then went into Sanu's office. "Judge Kato is here to see you, Boss. He says he needs to talk to you about Ranma Saotome," he told his employer.

Sanu looked up at Ryuu in surprise. "What's this? I thought he would be happy to assume jurisdiction in the case as soon as I called in sick."

"Do you want him to take it?" Ryuu asked.

The judge thought for a minute. "No, I don't. I got my ass handed to me on Sunday, but I don't back down. If it's still mine, I want it."

Ryuu resisted the urge to shout in triumph. Instead, he said: "Kato asked for some decent cognac, but not your best, so I gave it to him."

"That's fine. Could you bring me some coffee, please?" Sanu asked, and then he checked his watch. "You skipped 11AM?"

"You were busy, boss. You're clear until 3PM," Ryuu answered.

"Fantastic. Let me go see what Arata wants," Sanu said.

Sanu walked into the drawing room, "Hello Arata. Sorry, you had to come out here, but I should be in tomorrow."

Kato waved off any apologies as unnecessary as he sipped his drink. "We all get sick some time, Isao." Kato put down the drink and leaned forward. "Listen, Isao. I need to know right now if you are in or out. Saotome's case is heating up. His father is causing problems and we are looking at a royal mess."

Sanu accepted a cup of coffee from Ryuu (after he checked his watch out of habit), and took a sip. Then he said very directly: "I'm in, Arata. This mess started on my watch and I'll see it finished on my watch. Honestly, I'm a little surprised that you didn't just take it when I didn't show up on Monday. You don't want me here. For that matter, the town doesn't want me here."

Kato shrugged and sat back after taking his glass again. "I wanted the lead judgeship. I still want it, but it's a little hard to overrule Kokyo. I don't mean you any personal harm though. I was hoping to make you bored and isolated enough that you would leave – especially before Nerima began showing its true face. Unfortunately, that didn't work and now things have blown up out of my control (or anyone else's for that matter) – again. But I'm not going to yank the rug out from under you and I expect the same courtesy when our positions are reversed – and they will be reversed sometime in the near future. Everyone takes their lumps in Nerima, myself included. In some ways, we are like shipwreck survivors – we band together to survive and it builds lasting bonds between us all."

"But why band together at all? Why not just take off? The rest of the world is not this crazy," Isao said.

"Hah! The rest of the world is this crazy, it's just a different kind of crazy," Kato laughed. "We don't worry about the Yakuza here; we worry about ghosts instead. We don't worry about drugs; we worry about rogue magic items. We don't worry about gang wars; we worry about our martial artists defying the laws of physics. Honestly, I would rather deal with Nerima's brand of madness. Besides, there are many other areas like Nerima out there. I know of five other 'mystical' areas myself. It's just that the host countries keep things quiet, just like Japan does here. Besides, I was born and raised here. This is my home."

"What's this about Saotome's father?" Sanu asked.

"Genma Saotome has threatened to file a petition for divorce from his wife. He has also threatened to file a petition for sole custody of their son, Ranma," Kato said.

"He's in jail for the foreseeable future," Isao said. "He won't be in a position to do anything for quite some time."

"That's not entirely true," Kato said. "He says he's going to prove that his wife is a danger to his son and that the court needs to expedite his case to protect Ranma."

"All that will do is split up Nodoka and Ranma. It won't help Genma at all," Isao said.

"Correct, that's the real threat. He's threatening his family to force them to claim that this is all a big misunderstanding. He plans on attracting the national newspapers to Nerima and garner sympathy from the public so that the police will listen to his family. If Ranma and Nodoka don't do what he asks, they will be cut off from each other permanently," Arata said. "Genma says he can produce the name of a lawyer holding a seppuku contract between the three of them, which is all the evidence he needs for the papers."

"O.K., that's pretty cold blooded," Isao admitted. "Would he really destroy his family to enforce his will?"

"In a heartbeat," Kato said. "He's an extremely childish man. All Nodoka has is her son. A forced separation would destroy her, and Ranma knows that. He also knows that his father will pull everything down if Genma doesn't get his way."

"I see. He's basically saying to play his game in the press or he'll figuratively kill Ranma's mother. And he's expecting that the Law can do nothing except punish a sick woman whose finally getting better. If we ignore Genma, he orders his lawyer to tell the papers everything putting us in a bad light. If we don't ignore him, we either help split up Nodoka and Ranma, or Genma walks – which is bad for business. Does his family know about the ultimatum?" Sanu asked.

"Yes, and they are trying to decide what to do," Kato told him.

Sanu finished his coffee and stood up then. "All right, I need to go and stop them from doing anything for a little while. We are also going to place Genma in solitary confinement for 48 hours. If his lawyer asks, he's being interrogated."

Kato finished his cognac and also stood up. "You're going to argue that he's being interrogated for two days straight?"

"Pretty much. If anyone asks, we are trying to find out what he did with the family money," Sanu said.

Kato nodded appreciatively. "All right, we can sell that. No thief willingly gives up the money's hiding place. You're on your way to the hospital then?"

"Yes. It time for me to navigate between the rock and a hard place…" Sanu said. Then he stopped for a moment and turned to Judge Kato. "Arata? Why does this town have such an interest in Ranma Saotome? He's just one person. Granted; he is an unusual medical case, but even so, I've never seen such a fuss over one individual."

Kato thought for a second. "Isao? When you were a child, didn't you want to believe in magic?" Kato questioned.

"I'm afraid I was raised to be very practical, Arata. If the five senses could not interpret it, it did not exist. Faith was a dirty word in my parents' house. I was never taught to believe in Kitsunes, or gaki, or ghosts in general," Isao told him.

"Ranma Saotome *is* magic," Kato told him. "Here's a young man who by all rights should be a psychopath, but instead, he wears his heart on his sleeve despite his feign aloofness. He suffers under powerful curses, yet triumphs in spite of them. Believe it or not, he has fought the most awesome monsters - some literally, some figuratively - and, while he hasn't always won, he's still alive. His powers make him like a warrior out of legend, but he suffers from the same insecurities we all do – in his heart, he is still just a teenage boy wanting love and reassurance. Whenever someone feels overwhelmed, they can look at Ranma and think: 'If he's still getting up in the morning, then so am I.' Best yet, if he finds out you are having a tough time, he'll do his best to help you, despite his own burdens. It's hard not to like someone like that, even if he is rough around the edges."

"Can he actually do magic?" Sanu asked.

"Why don't you ask him yourself?" Kato pushed.

* * *

Sanu walked into the hospital room past the two policemen standing at the door. He saw a somber group sitting on and around two hospital beds pushed together. He recognized Ranma, Akane, and Nodoka immediately. He also recognized Ryoga Hibiki and assumed that the girl sitting next to him was his fiancée. There were two young ladies older than Akane who looked similar in facial features – they must be Kasumi and Nabiki. A man he knew to be Soun Tendo was also there. Nodoka was speaking at the time (something about "we cannot give in to him or…"), but cut off when Sanu entered. They all turned to look at him.

"Excuse me for interrupting the family council," Sanu began. "But it's time Ranma and I met face-to-face while he is in his right mind."

The red-haired girl nodded to the judge and climbed off the bed. As she walked to the judge and bowed politely, Sanu was struck by the self-confidence in the girl's (?) stride. Yet, her eyes were a stormy mix of vulnerability and determination. She wanted to be liked, but would not back down either. The judge nodded back to her and both of them locked eyes, measuring and probing. Finally, the judge spoke: "I know about your father, and I'm willing to help, but I need something from you first, Mr. Saotome." Ranma just nodded his head. "You and your cohorts destroyed my world on Sunday. I need you to re-build it again."

"I don't understand…" Ranma started and trailed off. Those were the first words Sanu had heard him/her say.

"I've never believed in anything I cannot see or touch, Mr. Saotome. But magic has blasted its way into my world and I need to confront it. I need to see it again and convince myself I'm not going mad," Sanu explained.

As Ranma pondered that, Akane slid off the bed and turned to her eldest sister. "Kasumi?" she asked. "Could you get us a tea cup of warm water?" Kasumi nodded and got up.

Ranma shook her head firmly. "I'm still stuck, Akane," she said.

"It's not for that. I have an idea," the blue-black haired girl said. She pulled over a couple of folding chairs to the judge and Ranma and bade each of them to sit. Kasumi came back with the cup of warm water and Akane took it from her. "Hold out your hands, your Honor, and take the cup. See that it's just warm water," Akane told him as she placed it in his hands. "Ranma, put your hands under Judge Sanu's." Ranma did as Akane told him, and looked to her for further direction. "Focus on the water, Ranma. Let's not give away the surprise." Ranma looked confused for a moment and then smirked. The others in the room came and stood in a circle around them.

Sanu suppressed an oath. When Akane had placed the cup in his hands, he could feel the warmth it gave off. Now there was a cold wave of energy rising from Ranma's hands. It passed through Sanu's hands on its way to the cup, but did no damage to the judge's hands. Sanu watched in astonishment as the water froze before his eyes. When the cup contained a solid mass of ice, Akane pulled up another chair and sat down herself. Then she placed her hands under Ranma's and spoke again: "Ranma has the power of the Wind, your Honor. I have the power of Fire." Now Sanu could feel heat flowing through his hands. He watched the ice quickly melt and felt the water get hotter.

Akane spoke again: "Ranma, we need to do this together or he'll get burned." Ranma nodded and Sanu now felt alternating waves of cold and heat flowing through his hands. He gasped in astonishment as the water began boiling.

"That's impossible!" he thought. "My hands *should* be burning right now!"

Akane removed her hands and took the cup out of the judge's hands. She held it for a minute, testing it. Then she held it out to the judge again. "It's all right. You can take it back now. It's safe to hold."

Sanu took it and looked carefully at the water. It was still simmering, as if it had just been removed from the flame, but the outside of the cup was only warm, not hot. "All right, I'll admit that's a good trick, but it's not impossible to pull that off using only science and technology."

Ranma grinned mischievously at the judge. "Well," she said. "We were not expecting you to request a magic trick and that's just a normal hospital cup. Plus, we don't exactly have access to the technology you're talking about. You can go get any other cup of your choosing, including a paper cup, and the result won't change."

The judge just snorted. "All right, let say I take you at your word there. What else do you have?"

Akane cocked an eyebrow at the judge and said, "How about a repeat of Sunday on a smaller scale?" Before Sanu could express his startlement, Akane took the cup away again and had them arrange their hands again, hers under Ranma's and the judge's hands on top. This time, an oath did escape from Sanu's mouth as a small ball of fire appeared floating above his hands. He could feel the heat emanating from it.

"Watch now," Ranma said and the judge felt a breeze move across his palms. The ball of fire began to spin rapidly, narrowing as it did. Soon, it was a small column of flame. Sanu felt all of the blood drain out of his face. Then the little column began to glow brightly. Soon nothing was visible but the light.

Akane cranked the light brighter and brighter until Sanu cried out: "Enough! I get the point!" Immediately the light vanished. Sanu checked his hands. There was not a mark on them.

Ranma looked at the judge appraisingly. "You're starting to understand, but I think you need a little more help." Suddenly the girl vanished. Sanu stood up in surprise.

Sanu saw the two cops who had come into the room to watch the show suddenly dived back to the door. "Not this time, Ranma. You got past us once, but not twice," one of them said. Ranma's chuckle was heard drifting about the room.

"Ah, it's just a cheap trick," Ryoga said dismissingly. As the judge turned to look at him, Ryoga suddenly vanished.

"Boys!" Akane sighed and then vanished.

"And tomboys!" Ranma's voice was heard to taunt.

"Now, now children," Nodoka scolded. "You are not being fair to our guest." She looked at the wild-eyed judge. "No, I cannot see them either, your Honor, but they are still in the room."

"But he did ask for this, Auntie," Kasumi said with her serene smile firmly in place – right up until she vanished as well.

Ranma popped back into sight a few meters from where she vanished. "And it is such an effective trick!" she said before vanishing again.

Ryoga popped in by a wall. He said: "The only issue is that we cannot see each other either. We have to move carefully to avoid hitting each other. If we do, we become visible again." Then he disappeared.

Akane appeared on a bed, sitting cross-legged. "It may make your Honor happy to know that we cannot fool cameras or other electronic devices," the young woman said. Then she popped out again.

"I don't understand…" Sanu said.

Nabiki sat in a comfortable chair. "What they are not telling you, Judge Sanu, is that this is more like a Jedi mind trick than real magic. They are not really invisible; they are just telling your mind not to see them." Then Nabiki disappeared.

Suddenly, everyone but Nabiki reappeared. "What moron taught her the Umisen-ken?!" the whole room shouted including the two police officers (although Kasumi used the word '"Who" rather than "What moron").

Nabiki reappeared along the far wall. "Tisk, tisk, children," she said mockingly. "The Umisen-ken is not the only way to get things done. And I am one of the Family, like it or not. Don't begrudge me my one trick," she smirked. Everyone else just groaned (including Nodoka, Soun, and Akari).

Sanu looked at Soun. "How do you keep track of them?" he asked the father.

Soun just shrugged. "None of them picked it up until the second year of high school. By then, I wasn't able to keep up with them anyway," he replied.

Sanu sank heavily back into his chair. He looked at the two policemen at the door. One spoke up: "Yes, I saw a cup of water freeze solid, and then melt and boil. I saw a small ball of fire appear above your hands and become a small pillar of flame. Then the pillar became light. Following that, I saw five people play hide and seek behind molecules of air. Was that what you were going to ask, Judge Sanu?"

The judge nodded. "Close enough," he said. "O.K. I'm not sure that really helped convince me I'm not insane, but we will go with it any way. One final question: How many martial artists (and I'm talking Nerima Martial Artists) are in this room?"

Ranma, Akane, Ryoga, Kasumi, Soun, and one of the men by the door raised their hands. The judge looked at the police officer in surprise. "Hey, we make really good police officers!" the man defended. The other cop just smirked.

"Get your hand up, Akari," Kasumi told her student. "You have the Power. You might as well get use to it." Akari sighed and raised her hand.

"So, over half the room is gifted? Is the rest of the city this?" the judge asked.

"Nope," the non-artist policeman said. "It's more like one in 150 to one in a 250. But they tend to clump together, so you often find concentrations like this."

"Who else are we going to fight?" Ranma added.

"And what about you?" The judge asked Nabiki.

Nabiki shrugged. "You asked about Martial Artists. That covers individuals gifted with Strength and Stamina. My one trick makes me a low grade Mage. There are a lot of us in the city actually – nearly a third of the population. The higher grade Mages are a bit rarer – about the same ratio as the Martial Artists. A number of the Martial Artists are also low grade Mages, again, about a third of them. There are some higher grade Mages among the Martial Artists including three (possibly four) in this room."

"So you three," the judge said, indicating Akane, Ranma, and Ryoga (who all turned a little red). "And who else in the room?"

"I'm the question mark, your Honor," Kasumi said. "I also have the Sight. Many people in Nerima have it as well. Usually it's the common ability of the lesser Mages and it gives them the ability to sense auras. I seem to be able to reach further than that, but my teacher and I don't know the boundaries yet."

"Kasumi likes to pretend to be a simple person. She's good enough at it that she often makes us forget she's not," Nodoka said dryly.

"Now play nice, Auntie," Kasumi said in her serene tone.

"All right, enough," the judge said firmly. "If I'm insane, I'm in good company. You've held up your end of the bargain. So, let me do my job and stay out of the way for a little bit. I'm placing Genma on ice for a short time. While he is out of the way, I'm going to take a good look around and see what I can do to pull the rug out from under him permanently. I'll contact you if I need you, but, in the meantime, stay out of trouble and don't do anything about Genma yourselves. Do I make myself clear?"

They all nodded, so Sanu continued: "For the short term, officially, I'm returning Ranma and his mother to the Tendo's custody. You are free to leave here as soon as Doctors Ando and Ono give you the 'All clear'." He stood up then and said: "I'll be in touch."

* * *

A/N: Something that confused people a little, so let me clear it up: Tofu (and four hundred others) fought Henna two years back when Kasumi was wrapping up her high school years. He returned to Nerima early in the summer after Kasumi graduated and after undergoing several surgeries and a lot of healing (and he was still a mess). Six months ago, Tofu returned from Ryugenzawa from fighting Yamata no Orochi (which ended in a draw, but Tofu got his task accomplished).

Also, last chapter referenced Chapter 4 of "Kasumi's Fate", but that was in the original manuscript - it is Chapter 5 of the web index version published on FanFiction. I've corrected that in the previous Author's Note. Thank you to Compucles for pointing that out.

* * *

Next up: "Striking the Match" where Judge Sanu learns all about Genma.


	7. Striking the Match

Chapter 7: Striking the Match

The next morning, Judge Sanu was awaken by the proximity alarm in his room and immediately hit the floor. A crossbow bolt "thunked" into his head board near where he had been laying. He sat up and pulled it out, his mood rising tremendously at being in the clear until 11AM. "I think I'll have Ryuu cook some eggs and bacon," he thought. "With a ton of garlic to rub the 'slime' gambit in his face." He gave Ryuu his order, got cleaned up, and ate breakfast. While eating, he heard the phone ring.

"Judge Sanu's residence, Ryuu speaking," the henchman said. The judge couldn't get any more from the conversation though; Ryuu just kept saying "Yes" and "I see". Finally, he said: "I will tell his Honor immediately. We will do our best."

Ryuu came into the dining room and said: "You better finish, Boss. There's a crowd gathered outside the jail all screaming for Genma Saotome's head."

* * *

The size of the crowd surprised Sanu as he and Ryuu drew closer to the jail. "There must be five hundred people here!" Sanu exclaimed.

"And there's more gathering every minute," Ryuu pointed out.

"Why haven't the police dispersed them?" the judge asked.

"I'm not sure," Ryuu said. "But isn't that Judge Kato over there?"

Sanu saw that Ryuu was right. He had his friend stop the car and got out. Kato saw him and gave him an evil grin, and then waited for Sanu to walk over. "Arata? What have you done?" Sanu said in low tones.

"Well you see my good man, there are a few cases I wanted to look at on the docket today, so I created a riot to keep you busy. I'm sure you'll have lots of fun sorting it out," Arata told him using condescending tones.

"Bullshit. The man who showed up at my house yesterday said he wouldn't take me down so long as I gave him the same courtesy. I believed him then and I still believe him," Isao shot back.

Judge Kato gave Sanu a wink. "You're learning quickly, Isao. Actually, I did pull a few tricks, but you are not the target. We were about to have a riot here. I just changed it to a peaceful demonstration by arranging for the proper permits and appointing a few organizers. A private individual offered to cover the cost of the extra policemen to allow for the proper coverage. Honestly though, I had men volunteering to do it for free; people in this town really don't like Genma."

"Doesn't the Department of Public Works have to sign off on…" Sanu started and trailed off.

"Councilor Tendo's signature is right here on the permit," Arata said smugly. These people have a right to be here until noon. By then, many of them will get hungry and go home. The rest will be on their way to see you. I do advise you to look at your docket for the day and clear it. You may also want to take over the Town Hall auditorium." Arata dropped the smugness as he continued: "Since you are the lead judge, I will be happy to assist you by either taking cases off your docket or listen to petitions from this crowd, but I do advise you to listen to some of the petitions yourself if you are serious about helping Ranma."

"Petitions? These people have grievances against Genma?" Sanu asked.

"Many of them." Kato explained further: "It seems some Nerima judge sent out a note to the other court districts in Japan looking for information on a Genma Saotome. The word spread quickly that Genma had been jailed, and now people knew where he was."

"Oh gods…" Sanu muttered looking at the crowd.

Kato continued: "Others heard about Genma blackmailing his family and are protesting that. Others just want to see Genma stay in jail since they view him as an affront to humanity." He grinned again. "I'm afraid this mess is of your own making, Isao. I'm just trying to control it."

"All right, all right," Isao snapped. "I'll admit that I thought Genma might be a small-time scammer. I didn't quite expect anything on this scale." Isao thought for a second, then said: "You and I cannot hear all these people. I'm freezing the dockets for today and I want everyone at the auditorium to get this sorted out. I want the police to pass the word that the ending of the demonstration will be strongly enforced and people will be strongly encouraged to go there and file their complaints. Any stragglers after noon will be told to go to the auditorium or go home."

"Sounds good," Arata agreed still smiling slightly.

* * *

Genma looked out the window of his cell. His bed had been moved by the prison guards so he had a good look outside his window while lying there. There must have been a thousand people. From this high up, he couldn't make out any faces, but he could read many of the signs they carried:

"DEATH TO THE PANDA!"

"CHILD ABUSERS MUST DIE!"

"WHERE'S MY MONEY?"

"YOU STOLE MY FAMILY'S DINNER!"

"WHERE'S MY BRIDE?"

"BRING BACK MY HORSE!"

"WHERE'S MY SON-IN-LAW?"

"SEPPUKU NOW!"

"FREE RANMA!"

"PRINT THIS!"

Some of the signs had no words, just rather graphic images of hangman's nooses making Genma happy that Japan only gave the death penalty in cases of murder or treason.

"Maybe I should hold off on bring the press into this right now. Somehow, I don't think I'm going to fare well in the court of public opinion," he mused. "Overall, Okinawa is beginning to look better and better – at least as a stopping point on my way to Taiwan or Thailand."

He looked around the jail again. He had already thought of five ways to escape from here despite the heavy precautions. "Pitiful," he thought. "These peons really thought they could hold me? My bones are healed even if the rest of me is not. As soon as I get my hands healed, I can escape. On my way out of town, I'll stop by the lawyer's office and arrange for the seppuku contract to be delivered to the courts – Nodoka really should have switched lawyers after all these years. That way, Nodoka and Ranma will be punished for defying me, even if I cannot hang around to watch."

He looked scornfully at the ants outside his window until he heard a soft "poof" next to him. Genma turned his head to see a young lad about twelve years old looking at him. "Who are you?" Genma demanded.

The red-headed boy looked at Genma. "You really need to keep your thoughts quieter," Tomo told him. "I'll help!" With that, he slammed Genma in the head with a large mallet that materialized from nowhere. For safety's sake, Tomo hit him a few more times. "There!" Tomo said with satisfaction. "Nice and quiet."

"Now, Mr. Saotome, hold still while I give you some pain killers," the young Kitsune told his comatose patient as he injected Genma with a hypodermic needle in the bicep. "That drug will work even on Martial Artists. My people are pranksters, but we aren't into causing real pain. We just need you to stay put for a little longer. Unfortunately, there's only one good way to do that…" he said as he hefted the mallet again.

* * *

A little later, the prison doctor was patiently explaining to a hysterical Genma that it was much too early for his leg and foot to be healed, and, of course, his arm was still broken. Did Genma really think that he was some type of superman? At least the pain medicines seemed to be working now. The doctor gave Genma a mild tranquilizer and moved on.

Genma sat alone in his room trying to calm down. He was also looking out the window at where the protest had been. The people were gone, but they had left their signs taped up across the street. As he watched, more people stopped by and hung up new signs. One of the signs showed a panda tied to a spit roasting over a fire. The cartoon fire was fed by wooden signs similar to what Genma would use to communicate in his panda form. The police were systematically reviewing the wall and removing any banners that they judged too graphic (but they usually left them up for fifteen minutes in the hope that Genma would see it).

"What the hell is this?" he thought. "National beat on Genma week? First Ranma breaks my bones, then Sasuke, and now this red-headed kid? And I have people lining up in the streets as well? I have to get out of this damn town!"

* * *

"All right!" the sergeant bellowed out into the auditorium. "If you are here because Genma stole food, please go to section A. If you are here because Genma stole anything else, please go to section B. If Genma owes you a bride, please go to section E. If he owes you a groom, please go to section D. Any other complaints should go to section C. If you are here to register as a witness to a crime Genma committed, please go to the sections behind A through E according to the crime you wish to bear witness too. If you fall into more than one category, please pick the one that you judge most serious. Thank you!"

There were seven judges leading a small army of clerks working their way through the crowd. As time went on, Sanu learned that the crimes all mirrored one another and it soon became a case of fill in the blanks (forms were created and copied on the spot). Testimony was hard linked to filed complaints and criminal verses civil issues were sorted out.

People seeking brides and grooms were informed that Genma's only child was a hermaphrodite and given the option to change their civil case (breaking a contract) to a criminal case (fraud). Those that were insistent on trying to get Ranma as a spouse were told then that Ranma had been promised to a specified family before he/she was born (something Sanu had not known). These people were again given the option of changing their claim to fraud. Many decided to switch then, but Sanu was surprised to see thirty to forty holdouts.

"Many of them have heard of Ranma's prowess as a martial artist," Kato whispered. "They want him in the family and they are hoping to convince Ranma to choose them over any other claimants." Sanu just shook his head and continued to fill in the blank forms.

More policemen were brought in. Not only did they help control the crowd, but they also took over questioning witnesses and some of the clerical tasks. Finally, the crowds began to dwindle and clerks began to categorize the complaints according to severity. Finally, the complaints were presented to Sanu and Kato.

"Oh my god," Sanu muttered. "This is insane…"

However, Judge Kato was happy to jump into the breach as it was: "All of the food related thefts older than seven years can be thrown out," Kato said. "The statute of limitations has expired and the yen amounts involved are too small for the individuals to pursue civilly."

"Well, that's nearly a hundred cases thrown out," Sanu said while moving a pile of papers off to the side. A clerk came and took them away for recording.

"Of all the thefts older than seven years, only three are worth pursuing civilly – one stolen rug, one stolen horse, and forty-seven stolen barrels of caramel popcorn. Unfortunately, there's no evidence anymore, just hearsay. Genma never transferred the property using receipts, so we have no hard evidence that he ever had the property. I'm afraid these people are out of luck," Kato said.

"That's fifty some-odd cases gone – there's probably more out there, but these are the ones we know about," Sanu agreed. He pulled the stack of more recent cases over. "Of the more recent cases, the vast majority have no evidence. However, we have thirty-two food related cases caught on surveillance tape. Most of them are minor cases individually, but together they show an established pattern of behavior. We can get him for five years on these by issuing consecutive sentences. Plus, because it's so spread out, he's going to be locked up for a year or so while all the information is examined and cataloged."

Kato nodded. "Genma was more careful on the later non-food thefts. I think he was expecting electronic monitoring on these cases and never made the mistakes he did on the food thefts. Mostly, it was camping gear he managed to steal. There are only two cases caught on tape were he stole blankets and water jugs from flea markets – again he didn't expect the merchants to have set up under cameras. We can probably add another twelve months for those given the pattern of provable thefts." He set the two cases aside and moved the rest away for the clerks to pick up.

"Only two of the nine slander cases are actionable," Sanu said. "We can only issue fines for those two."

"Yes, but if Genma has no money, we can probably get him to work it off doing more hard time," Kato said.

"You really don't like him, do you?" Sanu asked.

Kato's eyes flashed, but he only said: "My personal opinion has no bearing on these cases. But, I think you need to meet with him some time in the near future." Kato went on to say: "Most of these assault charges are too old. We'll never get him on these."

"It looks like he got wiser as he got older," Sanu agreed. "The kidnapping charges will never stick – he kidnapped his own son from people he allegedly sold his son to. So, that leaves..." His heart began to quail as he looked at the pile waiting for the two.

"The promises for bride or groom in exchange for items or services," Kato finished. "Out-and-out fraud based on the verbal agreement with the Tendos."

"Or with other pre-existing verbal agreements," Sanu added.

Kato looked through a handful of cases. "These will never stick," he said. "Most of the particulars are too ridiculous. There's one case here where he betrothed Ranma for a tuna fish sandwich and a bag of chips."

Sanu glanced at the piece of paper. "You missed the pickle. A good dill pickle is no minor matter," he said.

Kato snorted. "These people should have known Genma was pulling their leg. They are obviously not the best and the brightest."

"No, they are not," agreed Sanu. "Still, there must be some way to get a little justice for them…" Suddenly, an idea occurred to Isao. He grinned at Kato and asked: "Arata? If you send a wedding present to a couple before the wedding, and they don't get married, what is the couple suppose to do?"

"They are suppose to send the present back," Kato answered without really thinking about it. Then he stopped at look at Sanu. "But these are not presents," he continued.

"No, but they could be considered dowries though, and that's something we can rule on," Sanu told him.

Kato's eyes widened. "We could issue a judgment ordering Genma to return the monetary value of the dowry plus interest," he said.

Sanu nodded. "And that's a tidy sum of money. If Genma can't pay in a reasonable amount of time, we could make a ruling that he has to work it off at hard labor again. He won't be able to argue that he didn't make the verbal agreements – there are too many cases against him. We can establish a pattern and nail him civilly, if not criminally, for fraud. We just have to 'lose' this paper work and get the people to file civil cases instead of criminal cases."

Kato nodded. "Since people only found out about the issue today, it won't matter if the agreements were made more than three years ago – the statute of limitation would start from today."

A new voice chimed in: "Does that mean that I could get the money for my yatta back?"

Sanu looked up to see the Chef walking down the auditorium steps towards them. Next to her was a very wrinkled and small old woman that Sanu knew must be the Ghoul. Kato called out: "Tut, tut, Ms. Kuonji. You are not supposed to enter a Court of Law unless the Bailiff calls you."

"This is the Town Auditorium and your Bailiffs are on break," she answered pertly. "Now answer my question or you'll never get another garlic Okonomiyaki again." She rolled her eyes. "Honestly, I don't know how you eat that concoction."

Kato laughed and then drew himself up. "You'll give up all claims to Ranma?" Kato asked seriously.

Ukyo nodded her head. "Yes, but Ranma must pay me 100 yen in recognition of the wrong his father did to me. I wrestled all night with this and my Honor demands that much recognition, even after the hell I've put him through. If Ranma agrees to that, and Nodoka agrees to swap the damage to her house that I did versus the loss of my yatta, I'll release him and the Saotome family from all claims, honor and otherwise. But they must release me as well."

"I think that can be arranged," Kato agreed. "I'll pay a hundred times the 100 yen myself to end this," he mumbled to Sanu under his breath.

"Besides," Ukyo added cheerily. "Kuno has already coughed up twice what the house and property was worth to get the Saotomes off his back."

Sanu commented as Ukyo and Cologne neared the stage: "You're a true Japanese woman Ms. Kuonji. You have to have your 'pound of flesh' in the name of Honor."

"Of course I do," she agreed. "I'm just willing to admit that this mess is not really Ranma's fault, but it is Genma's. Ranma's just trying to cope."

"Unfortunately, Honor is at the heart of the thirty some-odd cases that haven't agreed to settle," the old woman said indicating the last pile.

"Excuse my manners," Kato said. "Judge Sanu, this is the Amazon Elder Ku Lon".

Cologne waved him off while wincing. "Stick to 'Cologne', Kato. Your pronunciation sucks."

"What a charming woman," Sanu said sarcastically.

Cologne hopped up on the table and walked across to Sanu. Both stared at the other fearlessly. "I'm over a hundred years old, sonny boy. I don't have to be charming." She looked at him a little more and then nodded in satisfaction. "You'll do," she said and then hopped off the table and pushed a chair over.

Sanu raised an eyebrow at Kato who just waved him off. The gesture said very plainly "It's not worth it."

Ukyo stayed standing in front of the judges as she said: "But, the Elder is correct. These cases here…" She pointed at the pile of papers and continued: "that won't settle, may wreck the happy ending. Ranma is very caught up with Honor and these will eat at him. I know they will eat at Nodoka too. Seppuku is a very real possibility for one or both of them."

Kato pointed at a chair and Ukyo sat down. Then he said: "Unfortunately, I'm sure there's going to be at least one person in that pile of thirty who will absolutely go to the wall and never release the Saotomes from their honor debt. Since I'm sure Genma will never commit seppuku to restore the clan's honor, that means Nodoka or Ranma will."

"Damn…" Sanu muttered. Everyone was silent for a moment until Sanu spoke again: "But we can buy time. Both Nodoka and Ranma are now Wards of the Court even if they are in the care of the Tendos. That means they are technically in the care of the Emperor himself. As representatives of the Emperor, we can forbid seppuku. Bushido has the Emperor at the top of the pile. They'd be honor-bound to obey."

"That holds until Ranma turns twenty," Cologne said. "Then Ranma is no longer a Ward and the court cannot compel Nodoka's submission with the threat of denying her access to her child."

"Could you just void all the other verbal contracts or permanently prohibit seppuku?" Ukyo asked.

"Legally, seppuku is against the Law, Ms. Kuonji. So it is already against the Emperor's wishes," Sanu said. "Fortunately/unfortunately, the Emperor doesn't have the power he used to. While I'm sure of Bushido effects while Nodoka and Ranma are directly subject to the Emperor's Court, once they are like everyone else again, the Emperor will not be in the back of their minds so directly. Short of an Imperial decree straight from the Emperor, which is NOT allowed in our day and age, the Emperor's wishes will fade to the background again."

Kato added: "I suppose what it really comes down to is that Ranma and Nodoka will behave simply to prevent embarrassing the Court, but we cannot keep them subject to us forever. As far as the verbal contracts go, we have no power to compel or forbid a marriage, only to ensure fair treatment of all parties should the relationships fall apart for any reason."

"So what good is the delay?" Cologne asked.

Sanu shrugged "While there is life, there is hope. We can work to convince the hold-outs to drop their pursuits and accept the restoration of their dowries. No one leads a blameless life, especially people willing to strong-arm another like these folks are willing to do."

Kato looked surprised: "Did I just hear the word "Hope" from you, Sanu? What brought that on?"

"Leave it alone, Arata," Sanu grumbled. "Anyone can change." He looked at Cologne and Ukyo. "What brought you two here?" He looked at Ukyo and said: "I thought you were going to settle anyway?"

"Cologne wanted to report a crime Genma committed and needed me to witness against Genma," Ukyo answered.

"You were there at the commission of the crime?" Sanu asked.

"No, I can attest to Ranma's mental state before the crime was committed," the young woman answered. "The psychosis your Honor witnessed on Saturday did not exist when I first knew Ranma. It was caused by child abuse Ranma suffered at Genma's hands."

"And you're sure of this?" Sanu asked.

"Oh yes, Judge Sanu," Cologne said. "The effects of the abuse Ranma suffered are well documented. You see, Genma subjected Ranma to forbidden training technique known as Cat Fu, or the Cat Fist…."

* * *

Sanu sat there later that evening holding his glass of whiskey quietly. Ryuu was lying down in his room; he was also drunk – one of the few times in his life. It had been all the bailiffs could do to stop the assassin from going to kill Genma. Sanu should have known his friend/servant was nearby and heard everything Cologne said.

As it was, Judge Kato was not exactly of sound mind either. Fortunately, Cologne and Ukyo had been able to restrain him until Sanu had dealt with Ryuu. Sanu had then been able to talk Kato down. Even so, both Ryuu and Kato would have been out the door regardless of what Sanu could do if it wasn't for Ms. Kuonji yelling about Genma's journal. Ranma had told her that the lad's father had maintained a journal during the god-forsaken training trip. If they could get the journal, it would document the Cat Fist training – and every other bit of abuse Ranma had gone through. Sanu never wrote a set of warrants so fast. Right now, police were tearing apart Genma's apartment looking for that book. The Tendo Dojo was also being checked, and so was any other locale associated with Genma.

Four times. That monster had thrown a bound eleven year-old boy into a pit of starving feral cats four times and left him there over twelve hours each time. This was Ranma's father. Sanu thought back to the mischievous red-head he met in the hospital. How was the child even close to normal?

Sanu heard the front door bell ring and got up to see who it was. When he opened the door, there was a short old woman with iron grey hair dressed it what looked to be a sackcloth robe. "Yes?" he asked warily.

"Are you Judge Sanu? The judge investigating Ranma Saotome?" she asked him.

Sanu nodded, still wary.

"I think you better run some DNA tests on Ranma, Genma, and Nodoka," the old woman said.

"I'm sorry? And who are you?" Sanu asked confused.

"I'm not leaving a name, but I'm someone who knew Genma when he was young. I said that you better run some DNA tests on Ranma, Genma, and Nodoka," she said turning to leave.

"What? Why?" Sanu asked, still confused.

The old woman had started walking away, but threw back over her shoulder: "Because Genma Saotome is sterile, and has been since he was a boy."

* * *

A/N: For those who have forgotten: The old woman is Mara, introduced in Chapter 3 of "The Destruction of Ranma Saotome – Ignition".

* * *

A/N: 6/10/14: People seem to be getting confused here, so let me make a statement: In any story, characters may lie just like people may lie in real life. Characters may also play games, just like people. Also, just because someone believes such-and-such, doesn't make it true. Characters may speculate and be wrong (you'll need this later). The truth might never be known...or maybe it will ;-) Also made some grammar corrections - thanks to PurseMonger for catching them.

* * *

A/N: 6/11/14: I accidentally deleted a Guest Review from Moose Breath. The reviewer caught another grammar mistake. Moose Breath wrote:

_In the proposed jail time for Genma, "consecutively" means "one after another." "Non-consecutively" therefore means "concurrently," i.e. "all at the same time." If Genma is sentenced to twenty terms of three months to be served non-consecutively, he would only spend three months in jail total. The same ruling but served consecutively would keep him there for the stated five years._

Honestly! I swear English is my first language - despite what my teachers claim...

I've corrected it here. Thank you very much Moose Breath!

* * *

Next up: Adding Tinder


	8. Adding Tinder

Chapter 8: Adding Tinder

Tofu walked in the door of the Tendo household Friday morning and heard the sound of his fiancée singing an old folk song (actually, it had been old in his youth). He saw his father-in-law-to-be sitting in the main room listening quietly. Soun acknowledged Tofu and held his finger up to his lips. Tofu pulled over a chair and sat quietly also listening. When Kasumi finished her song, Soun said: "Thanks. She has her mother's voice."

Tofu just nodded and went into the kitchen. Tofu was of two minds about this – he wanted Soun to move on, but he could also understand that Soun still missed his wife. Kasumi was pushing Soun to move on though, so Tofu just stayed out of it for the most part. However, once he had given Kasumi a hug and a "good morning" kiss, he did say: "Your father has been listening in the shadows again."

Kasumi sighed and replied: "I'm not giving up singing, but I need him to get on with it. One thing at a time though."

"How are the patients doing?" Tofu asked.

"Not too shabby," Kasumi told him. "Ryoga and Akari slept in the guest room, Nodoka is sharing Nabiki's room, and Ranma is ostensibly in the dojo."

"Ostensibly?"

"I'm pretty sure Akane left her window open last night for him," Kasumi replied. "Neither of them had really gotten over Jusendo and now the Summoning has happened. They really don't want the other out of their sights."

"Hmmm… I don't think it's just the shock and fear of losing each other. They are both quite resilient. Have you talked to her about birth control yet?" he asked bluntly. "He won't be locked anymore by the end of the month – I'm sure of it now."

"Yes, I have. When we see the GYN next month, I'm going to suggest that Akane start. In the meantime, I made a show of placing condoms in her top drawer a couple of weeks ago. She turned beet red, but didn't stop me, which means she's starting to think along those lines too," she said.

"Thinking, but not ready yet," he added.

"Don't try to make me feel better. My baby sister is growing up and that's the end of the discussion," she said firmly. He chuckled but let it go.

* * *

Upstairs in Akane's room, the young woman's alarm clock rang. Akane shut it off and turned to her fully clothed bedmate sleeping above the blankets. "Rise and shine, sleepy head," she told the shape-changer.

"Good morning to you too, Tomboy," Ranko yawned. Akane just smiled a little and tapped the red-head on the nose. Both of them got up and faced opposite corners of the room, then change into running clothes. "Set. Do you want to spar first or go running?" Ranko asked.

"Two seconds," Akane said still changing. "Set. Let's go running first. The others may not be up yet."

"Maybe, maybe not. I can find out," Ranko said closing her eyes.

"Wait Ranma!" Akane started, but it was too late.

"Eep!" Ranko said shaking her head a bit and slamming her hands to her cheeks. Her face was flaming red.

Akane tried unsuccessfully to hide her smirk behind a hand. "Ah…yeah," she finally said. "I assume they are up?"

Ranko dropped her hands as she tried to push the image out of her mind. "And in more ways than one. Got to remember not to check on them like that from here on in." Ranko face was still flaming. "How about we drop the subject and just go for a run – quietly."

Akane was still trying to suppress a smile as she opened the window and leapt out. Ranko followed her. They bade Katsunishiki a 'Good morning' and ran around the house. Then they took off through the dojo gates.

* * *

Nodoka heard the two thumps outside and smiled to herself – she knew full well where Ranma spent the night (even if the couple was discrete about it). She rose quietly from her futon on the floor and put on a robe. Nabiki turned on her bed and looked at the older woman with bleary eyes. Nodoka smiled, but knew better than to speak to the middle Tendo daughter. She was surprised when Nabiki actually spoke first: "Auntie, please make the coffee. Kasumi's been cutting it in half trying to lower my caffeine intake."

Nodoka chuckled and said: "All right, Nabiki. Did you sleep well?"

"No, I didn't – Akari is loud," Nabiki said.

"The proper word is 'enthusiastic', dear," Nodoka corrected primly. "Besides, I don't know how you heard her over that ton of walking ham sleeping outside our window last light. I swear, Akari's companion snores louder than Genma," she added with exasperation. "Oh well, at least Katsunishiki is clean – if it wasn't for the snoring, you'd never know he was there." There was a snorting sound coming from outside their window. Nodoka would have sworn the pork mountain was laughing at her.

"I think he likes you too, Auntie," Nabiki teased her sleepily.

"I've had worse company," she admitted. With that, she left the room and went downstairs, ignoring the soft sounds from the guest room with a gentle smile.

Tofu and Kasumi were in the kitchen. Tofu was making the coffee. "Put in a full dose, Ono. Your fiancée is the one getting the blame for cutting it," Nodoka told him.

Tofu sighed. "I was hoping she wouldn't notice. She's still a growing girl and she takes in a lot," he said.

"She uses it to rev up her brain. She's just going to double up until she gets what she wants," Nodoka responded. Then she raised her eyebrows at him: "You have noticed she's very good at getting what she wants, haven't you?"

"No comment," he replied as he added a few more scoops and skipped the decaf can.

"And while we are at it," Soun said walking into the room with the paper. "Stop tampering with my cigarettes," he told the doctor. "I'm also doubling up and it's getting expensive. I've started to keep packs in my office."

"Thanks for telling me," Ono grinned. Soun just glared blackly at him.

While the bantering went on around her, Kasumi continued to prepare breakfast, humming quietly to herself – At least until there was a soft tapping at the kitchen window. She opened it to see Katsunishiki looking at her. "One minute," she told the sumo pig sweetly. She gathered up the peelings and scraps and put them on a paper plate, then leaned out the window and tossed the whole thing into the pig's mouth. Katsunishiki lay down in the front yard contentedly.

Nabiki walked in to the kitchen and looked at the pig watching in the window. "If he's in the side yard, that means…" she started, but was cut off by two blood-thirsty war cries from the back yard. "That means those two are back from their run," she finished.

"He's only so tough," Ono commented. Katsunishiki seemed to be nodding in agreement. "They were gone a little longer than I expected though, so that's good. The tangle is unraveling more and more. I'm not sure Ryoga will be able to go home over the weekend, but by Tuesday or Wednesday things should be done."

"Good," Nabiki said. "I have class on Monday, and I'd like to know things are settling down."

Eventually, everyone moved into the main room and the rest of the extended family joined them. They were just starting to dish out the food when there was a knock at the front door. Kasumi went and found a sheepish Officer Ueda standing on the front door stoop. "Hello Officer Ueda. Won't you please come in?" she asked.

"Thank you, Ms. Tendo," he answered stepping in. "I need to see the Saotome family."

Kasumi led him in and people greeted him. After returning their greetings, he said: "I'm sorry folks, but I have to execute this bench warrant."

Soun shrugged. "We don't have anything to hide – we let the search team have free roam of the house last night," he answered.

The officer turned a little red. "Actually, it's a little more personal than that. I have to collect DNA from Ranma and Ms. Saotome," he said. The room went very quiet.

Nabiki started, "But Ranma's not in his birth …"

"I know that ma'am, but I'm not given a lot of leeway here," Ueda said.

Ranko looked at her mother and they both shrugged. "Then neither are we," she answered. "What do I have to do?"

"It's just a cheek swab," Ono explained. Ueda nodded, so Ranko and Nodoka stood up and walked over to the police man. He took out the collection kits and swabbed the inside of their mouths while apologizing profusely.

Nodoka stopped him. "This is not your fault, officer. If anyone's, it's Genma's." Ueda just nodded at her and took his leave (after Kasumi managed to get him to take a few biscuits away with him).

"So what happens now?" Ranko asked Ono.

"I haven't the slightest idea," the doctor admitted. "We are on new ground. I know that Ranma and Ranko have the same blood type, but the genomes are different in that the I know Ranma has only one "X" sex chromosome and Ranko has two, which matches the body appearance. That's all the tests I could justify running. The results could be anything from you're a clone of Nodoka to you match the girl who originally fell in identically to Ranko and Ranma differ by the one chromosome only."

"But I look like Mom," Ranko said.

"That could be the magic alone. For what it's worth, your appearance doesn't feel like an illusion. If I had to bet, I'd say some of Ranko's genome comes from Nodoka, but I cannot say how much…" Tofu responded.

"Maybe I'll skip Monday's class…" Nabiki said.

* * *

Genma was having a very bad morning. First the dreams were still with him where he heard crying cats in his sleep. Then he woke up to see a huge mural of a snarling cat on the wall outside the prison (at least the sign boards were gone). Shortly after breakfast (which was a small bowl of rice and a single hard-boiled egg), the prison doctor had come in with two other doctors and the three of them had conducted a very embarrassing set of tests on Genma. He would have resisted except for the guard pointing a gun at his head. Eventually, the doctors had left only to return an hour later with a small ultrasound machine. Once more, they conducted another set of embarrassing tests before finally leaving him alone. When he asked them what they were looking for, they only said both his "vas deferens" was missing. So were both of his "epididymis", whatever the hell that meant.

Finally, two guards came in to take a swab from the inside of his check. When he asked them about it, they only said that the court had ordered a DNA test. One of them had maliciously said that he must have left behind some DNA evidence at a crime scene. If so, he was about to get busted. Genma had then demanded that his lawyer be called in, but the guards told him that he was in solitary until Sunday. Besides, they had a bench warrant and there was nothing Genma (or his lawyer) could do. When Genma stubbornly refused to open his mouth, one of the guards informed him that they could also use blood instead of cheek cells. The guard then took out a baton which caused Genma to open his mouth quickly.

"I have to heal up," he thought. "But whatever that red-headed kid did to me is slowing me down. I need to focus and get out of here before they transfer me somewhere else."

* * *

Sasuke looked down at Ranma and Akane sparring in the yard again. This was the third session of the day, but this one had degenerated into a tickle fight bringing laughter to the little ninja's ears (there was only so long the pair could stay serious). Nearby, Ryoga and Akari were scrubbing down the happy sumo pig, determined not to give any of the neighbors any reason to complain about having a large farm animal in a residential area (so far it was working well). Tofu and Soun were at work. So was Kasumi and Nodoka was helping her. Nabiki was inside looking over some reading for her classes. All in all, it was a scene of domestic tranquility.

Sasuke retreated higher up the tree to consider his next move. His boss had pulled out of the hotel and retreated to the Tokyo business district again, but left orders to ensure that the three teenagers (Ranma, Akane, and Ryoga) were kept whole and healthy. Sasuke took this to mean the extended family as well (as one went, so did they all). He also knew that his fellow ninjas were tearing apart the town looking for Genma's journal. If it could be found, Genma would be looking at a very long time behind bars. Unfortunately, it was not where Genma stashed the money, and it wasn't in his apartment either.

But Sasuke had been watching the Saotome and Tendo families for a long time. "He used to keep it in his room, hidden under one of the floor boards. His apartment is concrete and cement – there's no good place to have a hidden space," Sasuke thought. "But he'd only have it where it was comfortable to write in; somewhere out of the rain, but still outside to satisfy his wanderlust. That suggests one of the bridges in town again."

Sasuke thought about the State Street Canal bridge again; that was where Genma had hidden the money in a hole formed between the bridge's girders. Why had Genma picked there? The bridge was away from Genma's apartment, and not near Genma's job either. The only thing unique about it was that it had recently been repaired (almost re-built). No one would be poking around it for a while since it was practically new…

A smile grew on the little ninjas face. "Genma works for the Department of Public Works," he thought. "They know the status of all the city projects including the ones just completed. Genma stashed the money at the bridge because he knew no one would be working on it for a long time. There's a chance that the journal is stashed at a similar location." Sasuke climbed higher in the tree so he could call his fellow ninjas. He needed them to go to the DPW and find recently completed projects. Then they could hunt for the journal at those locations.

* * *

Toshio Kuno sat in his Tokyo office ostensibly looking at the business reports from several divisions, but his mind was elsewhere. Earlier today, Sasuke had informed him about the DNA test orders Sanu had issued and Toshio's mind would not let the info go. He placed down the reports and pulled over the Saotome files sitting on a corner of his desk. He looked through the three files again and again. Finally, he set them down and stared at the ceiling for a while.

"Genma Saotome is one of the greatest idiots on the planet," he said out loud. "He has a lovely wife whom he never took care of and a son that any family would be proud to claim." He looked at Nodoka's file again. He knew what was happening to him – he was always bloody honest with himself. This had happened before, but the situation were never allowed to bear fruit for one reason or another. Once more, he was attracted to a woman who was unsuitable for him. In this case she was a married woman. He looked at her photograph once more and sighed. Then he looked at Ranma's file again and felt a flash of envy. Genma had a demi-god for an heir. Toshio had a mad idiot for an heir. But now a DNA test was in process that might throw Genma out of the picture and Toshio was wondering if there was some way he could get himself inserted. He laughed at the lunacy of the idea though.

Still, putting his over-the-top romantic notions aside, the idea had possibilities. Even if he couldn't get himself inserted, getting rid of Genma was a worthwhile goal. He knew Nodoka was leaning towards a divorce – if Genma wasn't Ranma's father (or at least the tests said he wasn't Ranma's father), the fact that there was no real connection between them but a sham marriage might push her all the way to a divorce. That and the fact that she was undergoing successful medical treatment would make her suitable and he could investigate romantic possibilities at a later date. Her true personality was emerging with treatment, and there was much to recommend a traditional woman like herself. She might be past child-bearing age, but Kuno was not sure he wanted to be a father at this stage of his life anyway. A traditional companion was an idea worth considering in and of itself.

He shook his head violently. "I am an idiot," he scolded. "I need to get back to work." Still he knew he couldn't get back to work unless he indulged the idea (at least a little), so he called in his assistant.

"Yes, Mr. Kuno?" the woman asked.

"Place an order to Gamma Team that I want copies of the Saotomes' DNA profiles as soon as they are available. Tell them not to wait for analysis – just get the raw profiles. We will have our own people look at them. Tell Gamma Team not to corrupt the process though. As the cards lay, so shall they stay."

"Yes, Mr. Kuno" she responded and left.

"That will keep the random thoughts at bay, at least until the results are known. Then we will see if I want the cards to stay…" he thought.

* * *

Kasumi was watching the teenagers clean up the kitchen after dinner. That was one thing Ranma's arrival had changed so long ago – she now always had plenty of help cleaning up after the evening meal. Ranma had always been intent on doing something to help Kasumi out, and he figured that putting food away (what little had been left) and loading the dishwasher was a safe enough task for him. Akane (and even Nabiki) had felt guilty after watching Ranma a few times and started to pitch in. Akane could be trusted to wash pots if someone watched over her (sometimes Nabiki had to make a few minor corrections) and Nabiki would wipe down the counters. They weren't perfect, and sometimes things got forgotten in the heat of the moment, but Kasumi appreciated the attempts. Of course, now they had two extra helpers, but that was all right since there were more dishes too. Nodoka stayed out of the way since she usually helped with food preparation and split the other cleaning tasks with Kasumi.

Afterwards, Ryoga and Akari would go out back and see to Katsunishiki, bringing him the dinner scraps, feeding him his normal chow, and cleaning the yard up after the sumo pig - he was a normal animal after all and there were messes to take care of. Luckily, Ryoga's arcane abilities allowed the young man to deal with things very efficiently. Someone overly prissy might think that it might be demeaning to use magic like that, but Ryoga was fast becoming a farmer like his wife-to-be and developing a very practical streak. Besides, any exercise of his own power helped untangle the knot between the three teenagers. All three had spent some time together practicing their arcane abilities to speed the healing process. Also, Ranma's Yang side stressed the dragon potion more and more every time he invoked the Wind magic.

Friday night was traditionally Family Night at the Tendo household (Saturday was Date Night). Eventually, everyone would settle in the family room. People would watch the television together or play video games (a more likely scenario with Ryoga and Akari here). Soun would talk someone into a Shogi game (but he wasn't allowed to cheat which always disappointed him somewhat). Those not interested in games would read or sometimes make dessert (if Akane was in the kitchen, Ranma would be right alongside of her), but they would all be together. Before that happened though, Kasumi had something to take care off.

She grabbed the burner phone out of Tofu's jacket and went to her room. Closing the door, she opened her desk and took at a phone number that she had acquired on her trip north last week. She dialed the number and started speaking as soon as the other end answered: "Hello, this is Kasumi Tendo. May I please speak to….Oh. Hello, Hayato. I'm afraid things are coming to a head faster than I anticipated. Do you have a few minutes?"

* * *

A/N: It's time to check up on other folks for a little bit, so the next two chapters are titled "Amazon Intermission" and "Beyond the Veil" (where we catch up with Kimiko and Maomolin). Then we rejoin the Judge and finally get the DNA results back. I hope you stick around.


	9. Amazon Intermission

Chapter 9: Amazon Intermission

A red Ferrari 550 Maranello pulled up outside of the Cat Café. However, Cologne had been expecting it and sent Mousse away on an hour worth of tasks. She was outside when the car made its appearance. A blond athletic woman in her early thirties got out of the car. She was wearing a black race car driving suit. "Hail, Elder!" the woman called out and Cologne nodded. "I'm here to borrow your dish boy again. I need a sparring partner for a little bit. He should be done with the lunch crowd by now."

"He is, but he is running errands," Cologne answered. "He should be back in an hour or so."

The woman made a sour face. "Damn," she said. "I guess I'll check back in an hour."

"Hold up!" Cologne ordered. Ciren stopped and Cologne continued: "The boy is enamored with that car. He won't stop talking about it. I want to see why!"

"Want a ride, little girl?" Ciren taunted.

"Yes, Siren, I do!" Cologne growled. Ciren smirked evilly at Cologne's deliberate mispronunciation. The younger woman came around and opened the door for the elder. Cologne hopped in and put on a seat belt. Ciren closed the door and got in on the other side. The car pulled out, merging seamlessly into traffic.

Once on the road, Ciren said: "I figured you'd want to talk to me about the boy sooner or later." She had dropped the insolence from her demeanor.

"I do," Cologne said. "But I already know you mean him no harm." She had also dropped the hostility. Ciren shrugged and Cologne continued: "There are other things we need to talk about too, and your car is shielded."

Ciren smirked at Cologne's comment and leaned forward. She turned off the radio and shut off the recorders. "It's your 'dime' as the Americans would say."

"You're a friend of Ono's," Cologne stated. It wasn't a question.

"Yes, a good friend," Ciren said as she took an on ramp. "But never as good as Kasumi if you get my drift. I'm not his type and he's not my type."

"Neither is Mousse. So why him?" Cologne asked.

"Because my kind always looks for apprentices, Elder. We often lead lonely lives and we wish to share them like anyone else. We build our communities from Outsiders. Our communities give us strength and courage to go out among those who are different than us, those who consider themselves 'normal'. Our communities allow us to have lives, and we wish to allow other Outsiders to also have lives." She looked at Cologne as directly as the traffic would allow. "That includes Mousse," she finished.

"Well put," Cologne answered. She paused for a moment and said: "Then you know he cannot go home anymore."

"Yes, I know that," Ciren acknowledged. "Your people put an emphasis on physical skills and abilities, even among the non-Warriors. You and the other Elders will never let him take a bride among the Amazons because of his eyesight. He'll be forced to marry outside the tribe and he'll always be a second class citizen."

"If he is ever caught with an Amazon, she'll be punished and he'll be killed," Cologne said. "He deserves better than that. He has fought so hard to be as good as he is. You and I both want the same thing for him – to marry a girl in Japan and stay here."

"I see," Ciren replied. "She doesn't love him at all?"

"Not in the slightest. Once upon a time, she looked at him as a friend, but things changed when they became older. He started to pursue her, which she didn't want. She tried to discourage him gently at first, and then became rougher and rougher. Now, his constant courtship disgusts her – she sees it as proof that he is weak. The best she can muster is pity on occasion. I think deep down, she remembers being his childhood friend, and wants to see him happy. But she also knows he can never go home, which is why she stopped telling him to go home constantly."

"So she's pretty indifferent when he leaves to spar with me," Ciren said.

"Not quite. She's hopeful," Cologne answered.

"All right. I need to adjust my strategy slightly," Ciren replied.

"Any prospects?" Cologne asked.

"Not yet. It's too soon. I need to get his head turned away from Shampoo. He's starting to take a good look around as far as what's available to him in Japan technology-wise versus the village. The car is working its magic on him. If I can get him thinking about expanding his horizons, we are halfway there," Ciren answered.

"If it helps, he'll have a dowry – the village has approved leaving the restaurant to him," Cologne said.

"It might, but only in convincing the right girl that he has a future in Japan," Ciren said. "Are you leaving soon then?"

Cologne shook her head. "Not until I get Shampoo to drop the idea of marrying Ranma."

"Don't you mean to get her to divorce him? I thought they were already married as far as the Elders were concerned," Ciren quizzed.

"That's not a hundred percent correct; more like 'extremely betrothed' – it does take two to make a marriage. Now, they are not even that anymore, which actually makes the Elders very happy," Cologne said.

"O.K. You lost me on a couple of counts," Ciren admitted.

"Ukyo Kuonji let me know recently about some things Ryoga Hibiki had said. When I quizzed Ryoga, he gave me a slightly different account of Ranma's battle with Saffron than I got from Mousse and Shampoo. Apparently, Ranma actually died when he fought Saffron, and came back, the same as Akane did slightly later," Cologne told her.

"That's what Ryoga has said. I'm not sure how it's possible for Ryoga to say that Ranma died though. Ranma hasn't said anything one way or another," Ciren said.

"Well, I can tell using a bit of hair. I checked Ranma and Akane. Both of them are one of the Defiant," Cologne said.

"I could have told you that," Ciren said with a slight smile, "But I think that word means something else to you."

Cologne nodded. "Death is an Amazon's final foe, one that always wins in the end. If someone faces Death and wins (abet temporarily), my people call that person one of the Defiant. The individual has a special place in the tribe – they are considered born again with a clean slate. All previous vows and commitments are declared null. Any punishments are ended. All outstanding debts are wiped away. This applies to those outside the tribe as well."

"So what happens to a married or 'betrothed' person?" Ciren asked, hope rising in her voice.

"The marriage (or betrothal in this case) is ended," Cologne stated. "The couple has to start over. Shampoo has been trying to give the Kiss of Marriage again to Ranma ever since she found out, but she can't get near him. He keeps pulling some sort of shielding technique, so she can't even see him. The one time she knew where he was, he was surrounded by a dozen cops. I've forbidden her to go to the dojo. She's defied me a few times, but there's something new at the dojo preventing her from sneaking in – several somethings actually. She's pushed Mousse to try and find out what's stopping her, but he just says he already knows. He talks about Kami – Japanese spirits I guess."

"The word is a bit more complicated than that," Ciren said. "But that will do for the discussion."

"The Amazons Elders acted quickly when I told them about Ranma's death," Cologne went on. "They have immediately forbidden Shampoo to give Ranma the Kiss of Marriage. If she does, it will no longer count. Since Ranma is no longer an Amazon by any arrangement, they have forbidden him to ever set foot in the village again. Shampoo tried to protest both declarations, but since there are no children between them – indeed, they haven't even consummated the arrangement – she had nothing she could use."

"So, it's over then," Ciren stated.

Cologne took a deep breath and blew it out in frustration. "Not quite. Shampoo argued that Ranma was too powerful to let go. Warriors of his stature only arose once a century, if then. The Elders countered that he was too dangerous. One does not willing invite a typhoon into the home. She issued a challenge which only required one Elder to support her, and it lost."

"I see," Ciren commented with a raised eyebrow.

"She's been giving me the silent treatment for the last day or so," Cologne admitted. "So, she has decided on a new tactic. She will get Ranma to marry her under Japanese Law, raise his children, and then divorce him and take the most promising back to the village."

"O.K., that's pretty cold blooded, even by my standards," Ciren said. "It won't work though. First, Akane has Ranma wrapped around her fingers, and he likes it that way. He won't even look at another girl." Ciren looked at Cologne with an amused expression. "Second, you know I'm going to tell him about Shampoo's plan."

Cologne looked thoughtful for a second. "Let's see, what is that expression? Oh, yes! … 'Duh! You think?!'"

Ciren smirked again, and then her face grew serious. "All right, fair's fair. There's something you need to know. Did Shampoo tell you about the Prophecy against her?"

"The what?" the Elder asked surprised.

"A little while back, Shampoo tangled against a Japanese Kami and got her ass handed to her. (1) I wasn't there, but I got this from reliable sources. The Kami then issued a Pronouncement, somewhat like a prophecy. It said that unless Shampoo 'changed her path', she would never see her village again. Now, like most prophecies, it's a bit vague, but most of us have assumed that Shampoo's 'path' was her pursuit of Ranma. Ukyo was there, so you can get a firsthand account from her."

"Ah hell," Cologne groaned. "Any way you look at it, there's only one good way to void the Prophecy. I have to get Shampoo to go home."

"As soon as possible," Ciren agreed. "There was no time limit issued on the Prophecy – she could have 'X' number of years, or 'Y' number of days. I don't know any more than I've told you."

Ciren took an off-ramp. "Where are we?" Cologne asked.

"Somewhere special. We are heading to a private test track I have access to. You said you wanted to know why Mousse was so enamored with this car. Do you want to back down?"

"I'm an Amazon, little girl. We back away from nothing," Cologne snorted.

"So be it," Ciren smiled as she pulled up to a gated entrance. She inserted a key card and drove in to a large fenced-in complex. There were lots of warehouse buildings and many people walking through the area. After a couple of minutes, she pulled up to a guard house. "Hello! Are any of the tracks free?" she asked the man.

"Hello, Ms. Blake," the guard said looking at the ID she handed him. He consulted a sign-in board. "Track 150 is free. What sort of tracking do you want?"

"Minimum security. I just want to make sure all the safety features are working properly. The car was repaired last week. I had a little issue in Geneva," she told him.

"I don't want to know," the man answered. She grinned at him and moved on.

"This car was in Europe, last week? Cologne asked as they drove through the maze.

"Yep, I get around. I'm likely to be in Japan for a little while though," Ciren answered.

"What was that about a safety check?" the Elder asked.

Ciren smirked as she stopped the car in front of a tunnel and leaned over to pull a second seat belt from the right side of Cologne's seat. "Nothing to worry about." She pulled another loop from the car ceiling. "When I'm done, this forms a four-point harness with the existing seat belt," she explained. She made a few connections and adjustments. Cologne felt very snug in the car seat. Then Ciren did the same for herself.

The driver touched a spot on the dash board and a small panel flipped down to reveal a set of toggle switches and some words in English. The only words Cologne recognized were 'ground effects'. As Ciren flipped some of the switches, Cologne felt the car shift and shudder. The Elder could see some parts of the car hood change, but didn't understand why.

Ciren tapped the radio and said: "Track 150 requesting safety check. No evasion tests."

A voice answered back, "Track 150 acknowledged. 30 seconds."

Cologne noticed a set of traffic lights above the tunnel entrance. A flashing red light became steady.

"Hold on tight!" Ciren said. Any reply Cologne could have made was lost in the acceleration as Ciren punched the pedal under the green light.

* * *

A little later the Ferrari pulled up next to the Cat Café. Cologne calmly hopped out and bounced into the restaurant. Ciren heard her yell, "Hey Part-Timer! Your teacher is here. You have 90 minutes so make the best of it!"

Mousse shot out of the restaurant and into the car. He pleaded: "One trip on the highway before we start! Please?"

Ciren laughed. "All right, Apprentice. One trip." Mousse closed the door and the car drove away. Cologne came back out to watch them leave.

Shampoo came out and saw the car turn a corner. "Will she make him happy, Grandmother?" the young woman asked hopefully. Those were the first words Shampoo had spoken all day to Cologne.

"No, Shampoo, but I think she will help him make himself happy. That will do," the old woman said. Cologne then walked calmly into the restaurant and sat down on a chair.

Shampoo noticed that Cologne was starting to shake. Alarmed, she asked: "Grandmother! Are you all right?"

Cologne seemed to collapse in on herself. "OH MY GODS!" the old woman cried out now that Ciren was gone. It took 45 minutes for Cologne to regain her composure (and several glasses of sake).

* * *

Shampoo kept an eye on her Great-Grandmother as she prepared the kitchen for the dinner crowd. Normally, she would have insisted that Mousse do this work, but, since he was out with the European woman, Shampoo did not wish to make waves. She needed Mousse out-of-the-way and was honest enough with herself that she preferred to see him happily out-of-the-way. Once, before adulthood had descended on them, they had been the best of friends and confidants. Then puberty had hit and everything went to hell. She sighed at that thought. She wished Mousse was female. She could really use a friend. She was a stranger in a strange land and very alone. She couldn't even trust Great-Grandmother anymore.

Shampoo knew in her heart that her people were threatened on all sides. She knew that her people need power – a new source beyond what they had available and Ranma was the strongest power her people had seen. Shampoo knew that even Henna was afraid of him. Henna had led the petition to banish Ranma as soon as Cologne realized Ranma was one of the Defiant.

Damn Hibiki! If the Lost Boy had kept his mouth shut, no one would have known about Ranma's death. Now it was public knowledge and there was nothing Shampoo could do about it. Shampoo had known about Akane, and was content to let the Kiss of Death expire. But she only suspected Ranma's death. Something had changed in the young man's core during the battle of Saffron. Just before he struck himself with the Gekkaja, his power level had been worn down. He had been in a fight with an immortal being and expended a lot of energy. After the strike with the Gekkaja, he was re-charged – more than re-charged. His control over the Gekkaja increased greatly and his manipulation of the air currents about him had increased in complexity. Then there was his final move against the Dragon tap – how had he made it look up? Cologne had said that move should have been impossible with the energy flows in the cave, but Ranma had done it anyway.

Cologne speculated that he was an Elemental wizard re-born. It would explain how he had picked up the Hiryu Shoten Ha so quickly (record time), and how he had lasted against Saffron so long before the Gekkaja strike. Then his death occurred and it allowed him to tap into his latent ability even further. Now he was a true wizard, able to summon the Wind. In her people's history, Henna was the only Elemental wizard they knew of (probably another reason Henna feared him).

And Shampoo was determined to bring his blood back to her tribe. Her primary goal was marriage. The field was clearing to only leave Akane and herself. She needed to use Akane's weak point – her temper – against the girl and split them up. However, Shampoo was starting to admit that might not be possible. If it failed, she'd use trickery – magic or otherwise. In the event Akane and Ranma married, she'd use seduction, even if it meant disguising herself as Akane (she'd have to see if the Pool of the Drowned Akane still existed). If that failed, she would steal his seed, even if it meant breaking into a lab. It was demeaning, but somehow, someway, she would bear Ranma's child and take that child back to her village.

* * *

The mail arrived a little bit after Cologne had composed herself, so she looked though the bundle Shampoo brought to her. One of the first things that popped out was two wedding invitations: one to her and one to Mousse. Curiously, she opened hers and found it to be an invite to Kasumi's and Tofu's wedding on New Year's Day. She chuckled to herself. "Sometimes, Kasumi is just a little too forgiving," she thought. "I'll have to find them a nice gift. No real surprise that Shampoo wasn't invited."

Shampoo was carrying a platter of silverware when she entered the room. She looked at Cologne reading and asked: "What's that, Grandmother?"

"It's an invitation to Kasumi's wedding," Cologne replied. Shampoo smiled – it was hard not to like Kasumi Tendo. Cologne went on: "Interesting…I never knew Kasumi's mother was named 'Kimiko'."

There was a loud clatter as the silverware hit the floor. Cologne looked at Shampoo to see the girl turn white. A terrible suspicion dawned in Cologne's mind as she picked up her staff and walked toward her great-granddaughter. Shampoo took one look at the Elder and began backing up.

From outside, they could both hear someone screaming "SHAMPOO!" over and over again. It was a woman's voice, a young woman's voice. Shampoo closed her eyes as she placed the voice. It was all about to hit the fan, so to speak.

"SHAMPOO!" Ukyo screamed as she dashed in the door of the restaurant holding an invite.

Immediately Cologne had her up against the wall with her staff. "Describe the spirit, Kuonji," Cologne said in a deadly quiet voice.

Ukyo gulped and answered: "She looked like an older version of Akane, but she wasn't ethereal. She was very solid." There was no way Ukyo would lie to Cologne right now.

Cologne let the chef down and turned to Shampoo. "Who attacked first?" Cologne asked in that same voice.

"I did, Grandmother," Shampoo admitted with a wince. "I thought she was Akane."

Ukyo tried to help "It was only the one mistake."

"I see," Cologne rasped. She looked at Ukyo. "OUT!" she barked. Ukyo fled.

Shampoo was now against the wall. Cologne shoved her staff under Shampoo's chin and pressed her further against the wall. "One of the Dead, the mother of your rival, appeared to you, and you didn't think it was important to TELL ME!" Cologne yelled. "You attacked, she beat you, and then issued a Prophecy against you!"

"I didn't know who she was, Great-Grandmother!" Shampoo protested, switching to Mandarin. "I just found out! I thought she was just some type of magician! As Ukyo said, she looked very solid! I didn't know she was issuing a Prophecy! It just sounded like someone shooting off hot air!"

"When did this happen?" Cologne grated out.

Shampoo winced, the words hurting even now. "When Ranma and Akane had their first date."

"Listen very carefully, Shampoo," Cologne said in a deadly voice. "*This* *is* *over.* You lost to the mother of your rival. Whether Kimiko knew it or not - and she probably did - she has claimed Ranma for Akane by our laws. Ranma was free at the time having joined the Defiant. You were not married or betrothed and Kimiko won him. By Amazon Law, Akane and Ranma are now betrothed."

"But they are not Amazons!" Shampoo protested despite the staff.

"I don't care!" Cologne yelled. "We are! At least for now!"

"Huh?" escaped from Shampoo's mouth.

"After Kimiko beat you, she said that if you did not change your path, you'd never go home again, didn't she?" the old woman demanded.

"More or less," Shampoo hesitantly admitted.

"This is over," Cologne repeated. "I did not spend so much time on you to have you end up either dead or banished!" She pressed the staff up further against Shampoo. This is what we are going to do. You will not step within fifty meters of any of the Tendos or Saotomes. You will not raise a hand or speak a word against them. You are going to play the bubble-headed Chinese girl. You will continue to give Mousse the cold shoulder and encourage him to look elsewhere. I will teach him more and more about running this place and dealing with Nerima. I will also encourage him to increase his friendship with the two families – they are very loyal to their friends."

Cologne continued: "On New Year's Day, you will throw a fit, and I will stay behind to reason with you. We will send Mousse to Kasumi's wedding to represent us. While all the Living and the Dead are paying attention to Kasumi and Tofu, we are going to sneak out of Nerima and go home, never to return. The restaurant will be left to Kasumi Ono to hold for Mousse until he turns twenty. I will leave a letter telling Mousse why we did what we did, and encourage his sisters to visit him during the summer at the village's expense. I think the Elders will agree that he deserves at least that much consideration. If not, I'll foot the bill."

She pressed the staff harder against Shampoo's chin. Shampoo swore Cologne was going to lift her by it. Cologne stared harder at Shampoo and said: "*THIS* *IS* *OVER!*"

* * *

A/N: And of course, it isn't….

* * *

A/N: Footnotes:

(1) Occurred in Chapter 6 of "The Date - The Flip Side". The chapter is titled "To Stop a Date (Part I – Kimiko)."

* * *

Next up: Beyond the Veil...

* * *

A/N: 6/24/14: At Weebee's suggestion - I changed "room" to "cave" to talk about Jusendo. It makes a lot more sense.


	10. Beyond the Veil

A/N: A friendly warning - this chapter ties "Combustion" to the rest of the "Bindings" continuum. I've provided a few footnotes, but feel free to send me a PM if you have a question. I'll try to answer in a timely fashion, but keep in mind my answer will probably be "Read section X of story Y" (there's no sense re-writing what's already written - although your question may lead to another footnote).

* * *

Chapter 10: Beyond the Veil

Maomolin, the disguised Bakeneko (1), awoke at the inn feeling something was amiss. He pulled off his blankets and felt the cold morning air inside his room. The shape-changed cat stepped to the window and peered out. Sitting in a field next to the inn was a large red fox, staring intently at his window. "Oh dear," he thought. "If one of them is looking for me, there's trouble somewhere." With a thought, he assumed the shape of a wild cat and sized the creature to match the size of the fox waiting for him. Then he teleported outside.

"Good morning," the fox greeted him.

"And to you as well," Maomolin responded politely. "Is this a social call or a business call?"

"A business call unfortunately. My lord has ordered me to give you a message, Cat Lord," the fox replied.

"Very well. I am anxious to hear it then, Sir Fox," the Cat Lord prompted.

"I was told to tell you that Ranma Saotome will be undone shortly. I was also told that you would understand the message," the elder animal told the Cat Lord. Maomolin just sighed. "I'm sorry I brought you news of trouble," the fox apologized.

"It's not unexpected," Maomolin responded. "And it's probably for the best. Tell your lord, that I will act on his message and to thank him for letting me know. And thank you, Sir Fox."

"You are welcome, Cat Lord." With that, the fox turned and ran off into the woods.

Maomolin stood in the sun letting it warm him while he thought. He should go to Nerima and be with his foster son. He should also locate Ryoga and bring him along if Ryoga was not already there. Family was important, even the strange ones like the young men and himself. He would tell Chiyoko (2) and her parents this morning. With that conclusion he teleported back to his room and resumed his human form (he was getting quite use to it). After getting cleaned up and changed, he started to pack – if he was going to eventually take a human wife (and the prospects looked very good), he needed to act like a human (at least as far as leave-taking went).

As he worked, there was a knock at the door. "Maomolin, it's me," Chiyoko called out.

"Come in, I'm dressed and the doors unlocked," he answered.

Chiyoko opened the door with a smile that quickly became a frown. "You're leaving?" the young woman in her early twenties asked. "But you just got here."

"One of my sons in Nerima is in a bit of trouble. I need to be there for him in case he needs me," He told her.

"Well…can I come with you?" she asked. "I could use a break from the inn." Her green eyes pleaded.

Maomolin stopped what he was doing for a second. "Why not?" he thought. "She starting to figure out I'm not a normal human, and meeting Ranma and Ryoga would only reinforce that without going overboard. They know I'm dating her and what I've told her about myself. They won't give me away."

"You might be bored," he said out loud.

"I'll bring a book or two," she answered.

"The idea has merit," he told her and then grinned. "I'd like a chance to show you off. For that matter, I'd like to show off my extended family."

The smile came back to her face. "Good. We'll talk to Mama and Papa after breakfast," she said decisively. "I could use a holiday."

* * *

The boy ran through the jungle shouting with delight (3). He was free again. After so long, he was free. He cherished the memory of opening his eyes this morning…

He had woken up in the Cat temple, laying in a bed that Someone had made for him, and could see his hands again. Looking further, he saw his legs and feet. He was no longer a disembodied spirit. He had stumbled outside (walking had been hard to do after all this time) and saw the plaza between the three temples. There was a new fountain in the plaza with running water and the boy managed to crawl over to it and pull himself up. Then he drank deeply from the fountain.

Instantly, he knew who he was again. His eyesight cleared and he seemed to stretch and grow with that one drink. Where he had been a toddler, he was now a young boy, about ten years old in appearance. Further information poured into his being regarding his Guardian – the mind he had taken shelter in. He felt the first stirrings of Anger and rejected them, there were no answers there. He felt Pity and rejected it as well for the same reason. Instead, he decided that Compassion may be more useful, and he should stir in a good bit of Justice with it. That might be a better answer.

He looked at the three temples and noticed that the eldest of them was still undergoing repairs. That was one of the reasons it had taken so long to wake up. He'd have to help that along later. In the meantime, he had to deal with the child. He reached out and pulled in a little Chi to clothe himself and shape some sandals. Then he tore off through the jungle, cherishing the feeling of being alive again – even if he was alive through the courtesy of another.

He knew that the child must be hiding in the outer edges of the jungle. The two Hunters were about and would have found the child sooner otherwise. The boy would have to talk to the Hunters later, but not now – they were not in a reasonable state of mind yet. Soon, but not yet.

The jungle sat in a bowl formed from a circular set of high mountain ridges. On the foothills of one of those mountains, the boy unerringly located the child. It was badly burnt and almost completely crippled. "Slay me quickly, good master," it begged. "Do not let the Hunters find me again. They have unjustly punished me for that which I had no control over."

"They did not punish you," the boy answered. "They hunted and hurt you because your survival meant their death. Neither side picked this quarrel. All of you were thrown together at the will of another."

"Then kill me quickly and end the battle. Let my death curse haunt the one who started this," the child answered. The boy stepped forward and touched his hand to the broken scales of the child. As the boy passed his hand over the child's bruised and burnt scales, the scales healed, tears mended, and bleeding stopped. "But good master!" the child protested. "Sooner or later the Hunters will kill me anyway! I cannot stay here!"

"You're not going to stay here," the boy answered tugging on the wings. The child felt his burnt wings snap off and saw the buds of new ones forming – they would not support his weight for a while, but they would eventually. Suddenly, the child found himself wrapped in a bubble of power and shrunk to fit in the boy's hands. "You are not allowed to hurt my Guardian. He/She/It and I have much to set right," the boy stated firmly. "But you are my child, little dragon, and I will not see you killed either. I name you 'Justice', little dragon, and Justice you shall deliver."

The surprised little dragon looked up into the boy's face and then smiled…

* * *

The fox ran through the woods until it returned to the Gate from which it came. It leaped through to find itself in the Elders' chamber again. The fox faced the assembled Kitsune Elders and said: "I have done as you asked my Lords. The Bakeneko sends his thanks."

"Good!" the North Elder answered. "Now take the same message to Lord Cronus and ask him to join us. Then you are free to return to your own business."

The fox winced. "Is it all right if I visit him as a human? I'm sort of partial to my tail…"

The fox would almost swear he saw a smirk on the North Elder's face. "Do whatever is necessary to deliver the message as fast as possible!" the Elder ordered.

The fox heard the rebuke lurking in the Elder's voice and bolted before it was uttered. He was outside the Elders' Council Hall and halfway to the Observatory before he formulated a good plan. Lord Cronus was the title for the Kitsune that ran the Observatory. This particular Lord Cronus has been running it for the last seven hundred years. The Observatory studied Astrology and Prophecy. It also dabbled in Astronomy, but only enough to understand the first two. However, it was also a whirling mess of gears and rockers. Very few could actually visit the place and not receive a few bumps and bruises. Lord Cronus's tail was said to be tied close to his body to avoid losing it. He also wore a helmet and encouraged others to do so. Privately, the fox considered Cronus a little loopy and thought that the lord had already received one too many blows to the noggin.

The fox shifted to his human form and entered the Observatory. He immediately ducked as a gear flew near his head. Inside was total chaos. The clockwork of the Observatory was slipping out of gear everywhere and Cronus was running around trying to shove it back together. He was fighting a losing battle though. The fox watched as a pendulum fell out of a mess of gears and then two rockers broke from their fulcrums.

"What the hell is going on?!" Cronus yelled over the din to no one in particular.

The fox took that as an invitation and yelled back: "Lord Cronus! Ranma Saotome is to be undone shortly!"

Cronus turned in surprise at hearing a voice and missed a lever that had just broken free. The Elder was knocked across the room and the fox stopped him before Cronus could hit any more machinery. Fortunately Cronus had wrapped himself in enough padding to look like an American football player and was not dazed.

"What was that you just said, lad?" Cronus demanded.

"I said that Ranma Saotome is to be undone shortly!" the fox yelled over the noise of the gears mashing and crashing.

Cronus looked surprised for a few seconds and then his face became grim: "Ah, hell!" he exclaimed. "Chaos is about to have the upper hand sooner than I expected!" The Elder grabbed the fox and dragged him to a stairwell. Behind Cronus, more and more gears became loose. Cronus and his companion descended quickly to a room fifty meters below the main floor and which contained a mess of pulleys all driven from a large five-meter central pulley. The large pulley was connected by a short shaft to one final pulley connected to a water wheel that was twenty meters in diameter. Cronus grabbed an axe from the wall and ran at the pulley on the water wheel. With a clean swing, the Elder struck the thick pulley rope and cut it. The rope gave way and all the other pulleys immediately stopped. Silence filled the Observatory.

"All right, lad," Cronus said. "Let's just sit tight here for a few minutes and wait for whatever is going to fall to fall."

"Did you just kill the Observatory?" the fox asked.

Cronus shrugged. "It doesn't matter anymore. The models are all broken. That's why everything was trying to be in two or three different places at once. We will have to build new models after the Storm."

"I thought Henna was holding the Storm at bay?" the fox asked again.

"Not anymore," Cronus replied. "Henna has tampered too much and the World seeks to correct it. A new Nexus is to be created shortly. As it forms, Henna will be powerless to stop the Storm. It will sweep her up and deliver her to her Destroyer. The trick is to make sure the Storm doesn't take the rest of us."

There was a clatter of metal from upstairs. Cronus looked surprised. "That's all?" he said. "We might survive this yet. C'mon lad."

The fox followed Cronus as they carefully climbed the stairs. Cronus reached the top and stamped on the floor a couple of times. When nothing happened, he called the fox up, shooed him to the front door, and followed his guest outside. Then he turned and locked the door. "I'm out of a job until after the Storm," Cronus told his companion. "No predictions are possible for a while. We have to survive on what we know."

"Who is Ranma Saotome?" the fox asked.

"A very special human. He's in for a rough time, but I think he and his friends are strong enough to get through it," Cronus said.

"Is he our Champion?" the messenger pressed.

"No, he's not the one who will defeat Henna. That task belongs to someone else. Ranma's job is to make sure tomorrow keeps happening. He is the Defender – if something is too powerful, he corrects it. Those Powers wishing to dominate are trying to destroy him, but while he is the Dragon, he is also the Phoenix. He will either survive or be re-born. He cannot be stopped."

The messenger did not understand any of that gibberish. Instead he prompted: "So…"

"So, our next task is to align ourselves with him, so he will protect us and our people will also survive. I need to talk to the rest of the Elders. It is time to bring Ranma into the fold…" Cronus said.

* * *

Happosai stood next to the Observatory and watched Cronus walk away. He was wrapped in his own version of invisibility (or at least "Don't-see-me"), so neither Kitsune was able to detect him. "I knew the Kitsunes were up to something," he thought. "That's why they sent Ono to the Council in the first place instead of just ignoring us. Poor Ono – he never knew he was being used, but he probably wouldn't be surprised either."

He sat down and puffed on his pipe for a while. Finally he thought: "So, by Kitsune prophecy, Ranma is the Defender. That makes a lot of sense and syncs up with the Bakeneko prophecies. The Ainu prophecies have Ryoga as the Shield though – is that a contradiction or a problem in translation?"

"There's too many cooks in the kitchen!" he thought angrily shaking his head. "I need to get back to basics. Ranma is *my* apprentice – he can safely tap the Nerima Nexus without destroying everything. He patches together Law, Chaos, Wind, Earth, Fire, Souls, Spirits, Feline, Porcine, Male, Female, Magic, and Mundane. The more Yin and Yang connections Ranma has, the stronger he becomes. If the Kitsunes want to add Canine to the mix, I should let them, so long as they don't try to break any other connections. Thank gods the boy's spirit is very good at playing one force against another."

"I should help him build more connections though to offset the Kitsunes a little. I need something quick and easy – something where there is already a minor connection. What would fit Ranma…" he pondered. Then with a smile, he chuckled to himself: "Well, well, my Wild Stallion. It's time you learned to fight on horseback…we are going to make you a Horseman. Might as well teach Akane as well – it will hook Ranma in more and the more training Akane has, the better off we'll be."

"But first, I have to stop Ono and his team from killing me," he thought ruefully. "They are not going to forgive me that easily for not telling them that Ryoga, Akane, and Ranma were three of the four Children of the Balance. Of course, if they found out that I have three Disciples, not two, they would really flip. But, had either of those facts been common knowledge, it might have led to the fourth Child, and she's not in place yet. If the news gets back to Henna, she might try to make a preemptive strike."

He sighed. "I need to think about this a little more…"

* * *

Kimiko walked through the Garden looking at the fountain she had transplanted from her daughter's garden before the Chaos had reclaimed it (4). Kami-Sama had Blessed it and allowed her to keep it. She also admired the Everlasting Roses the Gardener had planted about it, setting it off perfectly (of course). She loved the scents floating through the air.

Suddenly, she heard a disturbance coming from the direction of the Temple. Judging from the grumbling, Albertus was looking for her again in a hurry. "Honestly," she thought. "It's not like there is a strict sense of Time here. You think after a couple of hundred years as an Attendant, he would catch on." She didn't really understand Albertus – O.K. that wasn't quite true. She did understand him, he just didn't understand anyone else despite his exalted position. Kimiko got along well with all the Attendants except Albertus, who she seemed to upset on a regular basis. So, of course, Kami-Sama had assigned Kimiko to Albertus's group. Privately, she taught Kami-Sama was trying to convince Albertus that it was time for reincarnation.

"Kimiko! Where are you?" Albertus shouted.

"Oh for crying out loud," she thought. "This is Heaven!" She raised her hand and Summoned him. Instantly, the perceived distance between Albertus and herself became zero.

"Kimiko! You are not suppose to Summon your superior," he huffed sharply.

"How could I Summon you?" she asked innocently. "Summoning involves distance and displacement. Those concepts don't really exist here. Only our perceptions of them which is a habit left over from our time alive. You've been 'here' a long time. Surely you have caught on by now? Why didn't you just Summon me or appeared 'where' I am?" she asked. She could see the metaphysical gears in his head come to a crashing halt. Unlike her, Albertus was too bound by the concepts of Time and Space. He probably really did need to return to the World she thought.

Albertus shook his head and huffed at her again: "Don't tell me what I should or shouldn't know! You need to be more respectful! I know you have been messing around with your daughters' wedding plans! If you don't behave, I'll tell Kami-Sama!"

"Amazing," she thought. "Does he honestly think I'm fooling Kami-Sama?" To him, she said: "I have no idea what you are talking about."

"You've been talking to the Kitsunes and the Bakenekos. That's why Kasumi suddenly changed the color of her table cloths," Albertus told her crossly.

"A coincidence," she answered (with her fingers crossed behind her back). "I am the Tendo Family Guardian. I'm suppose to keep an eye on supernatural forces as they affect my family. Of course I would talk to the Kitsunes and Maomolin to make sure they would behave."

"Then why does Maomolin have a lists of requests Ranma is suppose to make for his wedding ceremony," Albertus demanded.

"I met Maomolin at a metaphysical 'watering hole'. We fell to talking about a possible wedding between Akane and Ranma and he asked my opinion. I just gave him a few suggestions. I did nothing improper," she said. She cut off Albertus before he could think of a response: "You were looking for me, Attendant?" she asked formally.

Albertus looked like he wanted to say more, but decided he better tend to Kami-Sama's request. He responded by saying: "Kami-Sama wants to see you in the Throne Room immediately. You are to go now!"

"At once," she acquiesced.

She immediately appeared in the Throne Room before Kami-Sama and heard a distant yell from Albertus: "Wait for me!"

"Oh, for crying out loud," she thought again, rolling her eyes.

She tried to Summon him once more, when a gentle Voice ordered her: "Leave him walk. It should only take him 'half a day'."

"Yes, Sir. You wanted to see me?" she said respectfully.

"One of your duties as Guardian is to update the Family pages in the Book of Life. It is now time to Attend to that Duty," the Voice said.

A Pen appeared in front of Kimiko. She was startled to see that it had an eraser. "What am I to do, Sir?"

"Take the Pen and you'll find out," the Voice told her quietly.

As she did, the Throne Room vanished and she found the Book in front of her. The knowledge of what she had to do flooded into her. "Oh my!" she said. Slowly she approached the Book and flipped to Kasumi's page. There, she wrote three new names with great care and saw three new pages insert themselves into the Book. After that, she flipped to Ranma's page and turned the pen around to the eraser. She then sighed: "Sorry about this, Ranma, but I have to do what I'm told…"

* * *

A/N:

Footnotes:

1) Maomolin has grown up quite a bit since the end of the Manga. To find out why, and why he has an attachment to Ryoga and Ranma, you would have to read the story "Brothers".

2) Chiyoko was introduced during the last Epilogue of "Brothers". Technically, she was introduced in the first chapter, but that version no longer exists.

3) This is the first introduction of "Boy". You have to figure out Who he is from the other stories. You'll be told his name in "The Last Binding" (not released as of 7/1/14).

4) Kimiko is the Tendo sisters' mother introduced in "Kasumi's Fate". The fountain was created by Kasumi in "Kasumi's Fate" from the Clean Chaos - a place worlds are born.

* * *

Next up: Genma's journal is found and delivered to Judge Sanu. Come see how he deals with the 'rabbit hole' in "A Stop for Okonomiyaki".


End file.
